Obsession
by BillysLittleCowgirl
Summary: Maxi, Kilik, Xianghua and Maxi's new love Ilya are on their way to Marseille, but Kunpaetku and Astaroth are still out there. Chapter 10: Kunpaetku makes his move .... Finally updated! R&R!
1. Prologue

Obsession  
  
This is just the prologue, and as such just sets the mood for the story. This is all based on happenings in history, with Soul Edge thrown in to make it relevant to Soul Calibur 2. There might be a mistake or two in this whole Yaroslav thing, so if you catch one, just put the correction or whatever in the review. Reviews, please?  
  
When Vladimir, who once rained over Russia, died in 1015, he was succeeded by his son, Yaroslav the Wise. He was one of Vladimir's twelve sons, and crushed the Pechenegs in 1036, fought a last (albeit indecisive) war with Constantinople, and regained Galicia from the Poles.  
In Yaroslav's reign originated Russkaya Pravda, the Russian Truth, which was the first Russian code of law. It was based on Byzantine models from the eighth and ninth centuries and brought order and unity into Russian legal and political institutions.  
But this was not the only Russkaya Pravda to which his name was connected.  
Yaroslav heard rumors of a legendary weapon called "Soul Edge," a sword unequalled in power. Because Kievan Russia was wrought with political strife, he wanted to harness this power and strike fear in the hearts of his enemies. He began to search for this fabled sword.  
Yaroslav's search was in vain. He had traveled across Russia and turned up nothing. Finally, however, he reached Europe, and found a weapon of remarkable power.  
However, this wasn't the Soul Edge he'd sought for so long. It was only a piece of the original, fashioned into a dagger. Angry, he returned to Russia in defeat, but took the knife with him, giving it the name Russkaya Pravda - "Russian Truth." Upon his death it was lost to the world, but was found many centuries later by a man named Sascha Strucov. He was intrigued by the knife and took it home with him, making it the family treasure.  
Years later, someone came to the Strucov home in the Kolymskii Mountains of Siberia and murdered most of the family. He was seeking Russkaya Pravda, which emitted the same energy as Soul Edge, a comforting feeling to him. But two of the Strucovs fled, taking Russkaya Pravda with them. The man left Russia and disappeared soon after.  
Seven years have passed since that day. Now Russkaya Pravda is taken into battle once more . 


	2. Reflections

Obsession  
  
Alrighty, this fic is sorta AU, but not too much. Yes, it has an original character, so many of you might be thinking, "Oh, a Mary-Sue fic! Boring!" Well, then, don't read it. But I promise it's better than my other two fics. I mean it. And there is a somewhat supernatural flair to it, but it's not something much more unreal than Ivy's alchemy, Talim's ability to control wind or Cervantes and Taki's abilities to jump like 30 feet in the air. And take Soul Edge itself into consideration. The whole thing reeks of the paranormal. Oh, and although I describe it early in the chapter, just in case you don't know, this story takes place with Maxi in his secondary costume. No reason, really, I just think he's one good-looking hunk of man with that long blonde hair. Mmmmm . Maxi.  
  
Chapter One: Reflections  
  
Maxi couldn't believe his luck. Not only had he been restored to full health by Okai, the medicine man from the village he'd ended up in, but he had a good lead on Soul Edge. If he found that cursed sword, he'd find the man he was looking for.  
He set his drink down, left the payment on the counter in front of the bartender and began to leave. On his way out of the shady bar in Lyon, a city in central France, however, he heard quite a bit of commotion.  
A man of 28, he was quite tall and fair for a Japanese, with dark hair and a muscular, lean build. However, in recent months, living in that village in eastern Europe, he'd let his hair grow slightly longer, and it had lightened quite a bit from the time he spent in the sun. His skin had also tanned to some extent, and he now sported a tattoo of a dragon on his right shoulder and back. With his handsome face and debonair demeanor, he'd become very popular with the women there. Perhaps that was why he promised he'd return.  
"You stupid wench!" a voice shouted. Maxi turned to see a very large man raising a hand to strike a young Chinese woman who looked vaguely familiar to him. Maxi leapt forward, catching the man's fist in his own hand. He then punched him square in the jaw, and as the offending Frenchman toppled over, Maxi turned to the Chinese girl and smiled.  
"You okay?" he asked.  
She gaped at him with dawning recognition. "You're . you're Maxi, aren't you?" she demanded. When he nodded, though without an inkling as to why she knew his name, she embraced him. "Oh, I'm so happy you're alive! Kilik and I have been so worried about you! We were both sure you were dead! Well, not sure, of course, but you know ."  
"Uh . do I know you?" he inquired.  
The girl drew back and stared at him in disbelief. "It's . it's me, Chai Xianghua! Don't you remember me?"  
"I've . never seen you before in my life."  
Dismayed, she lifted up her sleeve and showed him a thin scar that ran across her forearm. "Don't you remember this scar? A huge monster attacked me and you saved me just after I got hurt, and you took care of this cut. I told you I loved you just before you left me and Kilik! You said you'd give me an answer when you got back, and then . and then ." Xianghua buried her face in her hands and began to sob.  
"Look, my lady, I think you just have me mistaken for someone else," he said empathetically, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I don't know how you know my name or anything, but . I've never known anyone named Kilik or Xianghua. I'm sorry."  
And as Maxi left the crying Chinese girl after a brief conversation, another person watched from halfway down the crowded street.  
Maxi left the town after asking for directions to Marseille, a city that sat on the coast of the Mediterranean. He was told to follow the Rhone River south and then head east along the coast; he left immediately and began to hike through the lush forest. It wasn't long before he realized he was being followed.  
"I know you're there," he growled irritably. Whoever it was, they weren't trying too hard to be subtle about it.  
The same large man that had attacked the girl named Xianghua came out of the bushes brandishing a large scythe. Maxi rolled his eyes and grabbed Soryuju, his nunchaku, from his belt. "Come for a fight, have you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. The large man raised his weapon, and Maxi prepared for his attack, but suddenly a flash of gray knocked his opponent clear over. He blinked, and found that a large dog had tackled the Frenchman. "What the .?"  
The animal snarled, baring its white fangs. It was a very fine specimen and very wolf-like, with sleek silver fur and bright eyes. Maxi noticed that only one was brown, however; the other was such a pale blue it was nearly white.  
"Damned mongrel!" the Frenchman roared, struggling to stand. He swung his scythe at the beast, but it leapt skillfully away. "I thought I ran you out of town last week!"  
The dog leapt forward again, hitting him square in the chest with its enormous paws and knocking him over again. When the man stood again, Maxi stepped in between him and the animal. "Leave him alone," he urged. "He's mine."  
"Shows how much you know!" the other man spat. "That's a she-dog!"  
"Okay, you got me," Maxi said with a shrug. "In any case, I'm leaving, and I'm taking it with me."  
Maxi left the man where he was, spitting and cursing, as he snapped his fingers and offered the animal a piece of bread from his pack. It was shy, but took the food after a few moments. It followed him for the remainder of the day, until he decided to sit down and make camp for the night.  
It hadn't been long since he'd been restored to full health by the village shaman, so he didn't have quite as much stamina as he used to. At least the seizures have stopped, he thought to himself with a sigh. He looked to his side and noticed that the dog was sitting not more than ten feet away from him. "You need a rest, too?" he asked amiably. "Well, come over here, I have some spare food you can have."  
To his surprise, the animal just stood there, watching him with those eerie eyes. "You're a strange one," he mumbled, then closed his eyes to sleep. When he awoke he found that the animal had curled up next to him, its back against his hip. The sun had just barely begun to break the darkness of the pre-dawn sky, but it was already time to start out again.  
"Are you coming, too?" he asked it as he stood and started hiking south again. It gave a yip of acknowledgement and followed eagerly. It was strange, how human this dog seemed, and it bothered Maxi to think about it. However, he also enjoyed the company, and found it rather pointless to complain. It was his own fault for offering a stray dog some food.  
By the middle of the day Maxi needed another break; he felt light- headed. So much for being completely cured . he thought bitterly, but then realized it was a miracle he could walk. He hadn't had a single seizure since the ritual was performed, and he didn't miss them in the slightest.  
Suddenly the dog bristled. It began to growl deeply, glaring into the bushes nearby. "Aw, dammit, the stupid mutt blew our cover!" a deep voice groaned.  
"Never mind, we can take that guy!" another assured.  
"Oh, my God ." Maxi muttered. He took out Soryuju and took a fighting stance. Two men leapt from the bushes - they were obviously bandits of some sort. "This is getting ridiculous."  
"We saw you offering gold to anyone who told you about Soul Edge!" one shouted, pointing an accusing finger at him. "Hand it over or you'll die here and now!"  
"We'll slit your throat!"  
"I'd like to see you try," said Maxi with disinterest.  
The dog yipped and tackled one of the would-be thieves. Maxi found it interesting that the dog hadn't yet bitten anyone, but found very little time to reflect on it - he was in the middle of a fight.  
One of the thieves lunged for him, but he slapped him away with his nunchaku. When the other recovered from the dog's attack, he wrapped the chain of Soryuju around his arm, pulled the bandit over his back, and dislocated his shoulder by slamming it against his own (one of his throws from the game, in case you didn't know). "Get out of my sight!" he growled, and the beaten thugs scrambled away, whimpering in pain. Maxi then turned to his companion and said, "You're one strange mutt. Why haven't you been biting anyone? That's what dogs do."  
Suddenly the dog leapt to its feet, and glowed with a bright light. Within moments Maxi was facing a human, not the animal that had once stood there. "I guess you figured out my secret," laughed a silvery voice with a heavy accent. "My name is Ilya Strucov . it's a pleasure to meet you."  
  
Yeah, so that's it for the first chapter. Kinda short, but to make it any longer would drive me insane. I hate writing the beginnings of stories - it's just so boring to me. So, if you like, review - I enjoy constructive criticism, but NO FLAMES. I'm VERY sensitive! Thank you for reading. 


	3. The Lady Or The Wolf

Chapter Two: The Lady or the Wolf  
  
If my brother refers to SoulCalibur2 as Japanese homosexuals battle lizardmen to the death one more time, I swear, I'm gonna start killing people. Argh, he's frustrating. And since I forgot to say so in Chapter 1, I don't own anything related to Soul Edge, SoulCalibur, or SoulCalibur2 - but I would like very much to own Maxi. Anyway, on to Chapter 2!  
  
"What the hell?!" Maxi demanded.  
"Oh, and by the way, I'm a wolf, not a dog," the girl named Ilya said with an enthralling yet furtive smile. She was about as old as Xianghua, with short hair that was dark mahogany and heterochromic eyes. She wore a long-sleeved black shirt and baggy tan pants, with two belts criss-crossing in the front and back. A dagger hung at her side. Maxi immediately sat back down and rested his back against a tree. "Oh, back to bed already?"  
"I obviously didn't get enough sleep last night."  
"Nyet, nyet, nyet . you're perfectly fine, you're not insane or anything like that. It's just something I can do."  
"Uh-huh," he said slowly, eying her.  
"Anyway, like I said, I'm Ilya Strucov. Do svidana. I hear you're looking for Soul Edge, and I was wondering if you'd allow me to accompany you to it."  
"No."  
"Why not?" She cocked her head to one side.  
"This is something I have to do alone."  
"Why? Are you after the sword so you can take over the world or something?"  
"No, that's not it. It's just a personal matter."  
"You seemed perfectly willing to take me along when I was a wolf. Maybe I'll just change back, huh?"  
"No, that won't -" he began, but it was too late - she'd already changed back into a wolf. She sat down right next to him and grinned (well, wolves couldn't grin, but it sure looked like she was). "No way."  
Ilya whimpered and nuzzled his arm, eliciting a half-smile, half- frown from him. "Oh, come on, you don't want to hang around with me ."  
The wolf became the girl again. "Of course I do! I have nothing better to do, and you're better company than most people."  
"How do you know that? You've known me for a day."  
"Because you don't talk much." When Maxi raised an eyebrow, she sighed and continued. "I hate it when people talk all the time. I have a brother who's like that."  
"Well, I hate it when people talk a lot as well. So I guess we're in agreement."  
"So I can go, then?"  
"No." Maxi got up and started walking again. "I'm going alone."  
"Great. I'll go with you." She jumped up and started following him.  
Ilya watched with delight as his shoulders hunched with anger. "Didn't I just finish saying ."  
"I have nowhere else to go. Besides, we're both headed to Marseille, right? And this is the only way I can go without getting lost. I'd say you're stuck."  
Maxi sighed. "Do whatever you want. Just don't bother me."  
"Done deal. Would you like me to travel as a wolf or as a human?"  
"How do you change into a wolf, anyway?"  
"Everyone in the Strucov family can change into an animal. It's a feature of our tribe. Since my spirit animal is a wolf, I can become a wolf at will. It's as simple as that."  
"Doesn't sound that simple. It must be some sort of black magic."  
Ilya gave a cluck of disapproval. "No, no, nothing like that. It's sort of like how some people from the Philippines can control wind. It's just something we've been able to do ever since we came into existence."  
"Where are you from, anyway?"  
"I come from the Kolymskii Mountains in Siberia. Why do you ask?"  
"Huh. No wonder I've never heard of this tribe of shape-shifters."  
"It's quite remote, yes. Anyway, is it alright if I stay human? I can't be a wolf for too long. Besides, it's murder on my back."  
"Fine," Maxi grunted.  
"You seem a lot less pleasant than you did earlier," Ilya observed with a grin.  
"That's because some strange dog didn't turn into a girl right in front of me. I don't take well to things like that."  
"It doesn't matter that much. Now, lead the way!"  
There was absolutely no exchange of words between the two until sundown, when they made camp. Strangely, Ilya's human self was carrying a backpack, something her wolf form lacked (not to mention that she was now wearing clothes .). She pulled out a piece of bread and began to nibble at it. Maxi looked at her with a good deal of interest. "Why are you after Soul Edge?"  
She smiled. "I have no interest in the sword itself. I just want to get there before anyone else."  
"Why?"  
She grinned even more broadly. "So I can say I did."  
"There's got to be more to it than that."  
"Nope." The reply was quite cheery.  
The two ate in silence. When the stars started to come out, Ilya gazed up at them. "Beautiful . back home, it's usually so cloudy you can't see the stars."  
"What's Siberia like?"  
"Cold, very cold. And lonely. There aren't many people in the Kolymskii Range, so it's just Anatoli and myself, and about twenty people in the village."  
"Is that your brother?"  
"Yes, the stupid jerk."  
"What happened to your parents?"  
She shook her head, but her smile did not fade. "Dead. Same with my sisters. Oh, and Anatoli's wife, and their son."  
"How?"  
"My, my, so much for not talking much, eh?"  
"You're the one who started it off by talking about the stars ."  
"Well, there was this pirate named Cervantes de Leon who used to have Soul Edge. I assume you've heard of him, right?" Maxi nodded, knowing where this was heading. "One day, about seven or so years ago, he just suddenly came around and killed everyone in Belaruus - that's the village I live in. Evidently he was looking for this." She pulled her dagger from its sheath. "Russkaya Pravda . it means 'The Russian Truth,' named for the first Russian code of law, which was laid down by Yaroslav many centuries ago. That's how old it is - it used to belong to him. So, after my parents, my sisters, my sister-in-law and my baby nephew were killed, Anatoli took me and this knife and left. We went back about a week later, and Cervantes was gone."  
"So you're after Soul Edge for revenge?"  
"Oh, no, it's not like that. I'm not the vengeful type. Besides, I hear Cervantes is dead and gone. Anyway, I just want to see that sword with my own eyes."  
Maxi shook his head. He didn't believe her for a minute . but if she was lying, she was one damn good liar. "So, why are you after it?"  
"Revenge," was the simple reply.  
"Oh, really?" Ilya sounded intrigued, but Maxi didn't want to elaborate. "I told you my reasons, so why don't you tell me yours?"  
Reluctantly, Maxi said, "A golem who was after Soul Edge killed everyone important to me."  
"Ah, so you're the vengeful type, huh? So you think if you find that sword, you'll find this golem?"  
"Yes."  
"I wouldn't doubt it."  
"Say ."  
"Hm?"  
"You were following me back in Lyon, right?"  
"Of course."  
"So you saw that Chinese girl who claimed she knew me, correct?"  
"Yeah. So?"  
"Nothing, it's just . she seemed really familiar."  
"Maybe she knows you, and you don't remember her."  
"That could be it . but I never forget a face."  
"She said she loved you. I thought that was really cute."  
"Oh, shut up."  
Ilya laughed. "Don't be like that."  
"I know you say you don't like talking, but how'd you get here?"  
"It was hard, seeing as I have absolutely no sense of direction. I get a lot of money from my job, if you can call it that, so I had to hitch a ride everywhere I went to avoid getting lost."  
"Job?"  
"Sort of. I'm a pirate hunter."  
Uh-oh, Maxi thought. "Pirate hunter? Why?"  
"Because they're the scum of the earth."  
"Because Cervantes killed your family?"  
"No, that's not the only thing! I've never met a pirate who deserved to live!" Her typical sangfroid demeanor had shattered, leaving her with a bitter and arctic air.  
"Are you any good at this job of yours?" Best to saunter on the side of caution.  
She smiled again. "Of course! My parents taught me their style of fencing, and it wasn't hard to turn that into knife-fighting. See, knives are better than swords because they're so light and easy to control. It's best to fight with speed rather than strength, as I see it."  
Maxi felt rather conflicted. This girl was to accompany him to Marseille, but she hated pirates and hunted them for a living. Seeing as he himself was a pirate, this didn't bode well. "You kill pirates . for money?"  
"Only if I have to. Unless they're really stubborn about it, I just turn 'em in for the bounty. See, back home, pirates aren't looked kindly upon. Pirates are worth a pretty penny back there, and I exploit that to its fullest. Besides, killing pirates isn't going to undo everything they've done, right? That's why revenge isn't exactly part of the picture."  
"Not exactly? What's that mean?"  
"Just what I said - it's not really part of the picture. I mostly do it out of spite. Revenge and spite are two entirely different things. If I did what I do for revenge, it'd be because I somehow felt killing them would make me feel better or fix the past. I do it out of spite, which means I just do it because I hate them."  
"I don't see much of a difference ."  
"I say tomato, you say tomahto," she said with a shrug. "Makes perfect sense to me."  
Maxi decided it best not to make mention that he was a pirate, since it was sort of nice having someone to talk to. They settled down for bed, with Maxi resting against a tree trunk and Ilya lying on the ground using a thick coat as a pillow. "If you get cold, just take my other coat," she said cheerfully. "It's right over there."  
"What if you get cold?"  
"I can always turn into a wolf. If I just sleep as a wolf, my back won't hurt when I change back. It's just the walking that does it."  
Around midnight, when both were sound asleep, something crept into their camp. It paused by the dying coals of their fire, then headed toward Maxi. With one clawed finger it removed his red scarf, and prepared to slit his tender throat.  
Suddenly Maxi's eyes flew open, and he punched the offending creature in the place where its face should have been. It stumbled backward and gripped where it had been struck. It was a hulking mass of darkness, barely tangible at best, that had skin that was solid but looked to be made of water; in fact, when he punched it, it felt as though he were punching a squid. "A demon, eh?" Maxi asked with a smirk. "You'll find me no easy prey."  
"Another one?" Ilya's voiced asked. She'd obviously been awakened by the racket. "Demons just keep popping up here in Europe!"  
"Ready for a fight, kid?" Maxi inquired as he grabbed Soryuju from the ground.  
"Don't call me 'kid'," Ilya replied, drawing Russkaya Pravda.  
The demon leapt toward Maxi, but he slapped it away with one deft swing of his nunchaku; Ilya leapt in quickly and slashed at it. A deep cut appeared on its "shoulder," or whatever it was; it looked like its shoulder. Blue blood gushed from the wound and spilled over onto the ground. "Not bad," said Maxi.  
Ilya smiled. "I do this for a living, you know."  
Within moments the demon had taken enough punishment from the two of them to be felled. "How old are you?" Maxi asked, impressed by her speed and skill.  
"Just turned twenty," the Russian girl responded, grinning. "So you don't have to call me 'kid.' In Belaruus, you're considered an adult when you reach that age."  
"Where I come from, you're considered an adult when you act like one," Maxi retorted.  
"Touché."  
"Anyway, we'd better get going. This thing's gonna attract more, I'll wager."  
The two hiked another three miles or so down the river in complete silence. Finally they came upon a house in the woods, and looked at each other as if to ask if they should dare to ask for a room. After a split second of deliberation, they knocked on the door, and it was answered by an old woman with a kindly expression.  
"Callers, this time of night?" she asked amiably. "I suppose you'll be needing a place to stay, am I correct?"  
"Oh, that would be lovely!" Ilya said in a sweet voice. "We'd be very grateful if you'd let us stay here for the night ."  
"No problem, dear, I've already had another couple come across here this evening. Come in, come in." She ushered them inside and closed the door behind them. "Are you two married?"  
Maxi looked shocked, but Ilya giggled. "No, we're not," Maxi said quickly, but Ilya grabbed his arm and hugged it affectionately.  
"Come on, honey, you know that's not true!" she teased.  
"I'm afraid my house isn't much, but it's the best you can get between here and the next town."  
"Don't worry about it, it's quite nice. I'll be glad to pay you any sum of money you want ." Ilya began, but their host held up a hand to silence her.  
"No, I don't have any need for money. I'm just glad to help travelers. Now, I'll show you to your room, but if either of you would like to take a bath, the bathtub is in here." She gestured to a closed door on her right as she led them down a short hallway. "And here's your room ."  
As she led them further down the hall, the two heard voices. "I know, but it's been a long time since we've seen him . are you sure?" a man's soft voice was asking.  
"It was him! I'm certain!"  
"Oh, that would be the other two that are staying here tonight. I'll introduce you."  
The old woman knocked on the door to a room and then opened it, revealing a young man sitting on a chair and a very upset-looking Xianghua.  
  
Please review. And I've said it before, but . NO FLAMES. I wrote that on my last two fics and that was, like, all I got, basically. That's it for now, it'll get better, but I have to get back to watching Law & Order, which I love oh so much. 


	4. Getting To Know You

Chapter Three: Getting To Know You  
  
Mmmmm . Kanna Nobutoshi has one SEXY voice. Maxi's English voice isn't that bad, but Kanna . oooh, baby. Sorry, just been playin' too much SoulCalibur2 lately . and my brother took a look at Maxi and said "I'll bet he's on Bill Clinton's don't-ask-don't-tell list. Whatever, he's weird, huh? Oh, yada yada, I don't own anything except bipolar disorder and a whole lotta anime DVDs.  
  
"Maxi ." the young man murmured.  
"Maxi!" Xianghua exclaimed. She leapt forward and hugged him, obviously forgetting that he had no memory of her.  
"Oh, how cute!" Ilya gushed.  
"What the .?" he demanded. "You again?"  
The young man stood up. "Maxi . I'm so glad to see you're alive! I thought you'd been killed!"  
"Look, I don't . know either of you."  
"But . it's me, Kilik! We traveled together for months, you, me and Xianghua! How could you have forgotten?"  
"I would have remembered you if I'd ever met you." Maxi gently but firmly removed Xianghua from himself and turned to the old woman. "Where's our room, again?"  
Ilya was watching with an intense curiosity. "Wow, now there're two of them!" she said with a strange sort of amusement in her voice, as though she were rather pleased to be witnessing it.  
"You certainly sound interested," Maxi mumbled, giving her a frown, to which she replied with a grin. "This is getting strange."  
"Are you sure . you don't remember us .?" Xianghua said slowly and sadly.  
"Of course I don't! I've said it before!" His patience was wearing thin.  
"Look, your name is Maxi. You're from Shuri, in the Ryukyu Kingdom. You went after Astaroth because he killed your crew and your sworn brother ." Kilik began, but a fierce gaze from Maxi stopped him mid-sentence.  
"I don't know how you know all of that, but . I don't know you! I'd just like to be left alone. And yes, that includes you!" he added purely as an afterthought, looking at Ilya. He then stormed out of the room, leaving the Russian girl with Kilik and Xianghua.  
"Men are such babies," Ilya huffed, pursing her lips ever so slightly in irritation.  
"Excuse me, but who are you?" Xianghua inquired.  
Ilya turned to face her. "Oh, me?" she asked, cheerful tone reappearing. "I'm Ilya Strucov. It's a pleasure to meet you!"  
"How do you know Maxi?" Kilik asked.  
"We met just two days ago. I've been tagging along with him on the way to Marseille. He's a bit grouchy, isn't he?"  
"My, my, it seems we're having a few problems, no?" the old French woman said. "Anyway, my name is Annabelle. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call."  
"Thank you very much, Annabelle!" Ilya said happily as she left. "I'm sure Maxi's thankful, too!" She turned back to Kilik and Xianghua. "Well, guess I'll be on my way, then!" She gave a wave as she turned and left, following Maxi.  
She found him in the room they were to share, laying on one of the beds and facing the wall. "Look, I'll leave you alone as soon as we get to Marseille and I get any information about Soul Edge," Ilya announced. "I'll stop following you. I'll hire a guide or something."  
"I didn't . mean to be so rude."  
"It doesn't bother me. I live with a jerk, you know." Ilya set her things down on the other bed and grabbed a pair of baggy pants and a long- sleeved shirt from her bag. "I'm going to take a bath. It's been a while since I've been able to just soak in the tub."  
He rolled over and looked at her. "You realize that I don't believe for a minute you only want to find Soul Edge to say you did, don't you?"  
Ilya gave him a scornful glare but then sighed and shook her head, smiling. "You got me. That's not the reason."  
"I haven't known you very long, but I knew someone who used to act just the way you do, so I know when people like you are hiding something."  
"If you know that, then you'll know I have no intention of telling you the real reason!" she added merrily.  
"It's for revenge, isn't it?"  
She shook her head. "No, not that. Nothing's as simple as it seems, you realize. Remember, the world isn't black or white - just gray."  
He gave her a faint smile. "You really are like Kyam, you know?"  
"Who's he?"  
"He was . my brother, essentially. We weren't just friends, we were like brothers. He was killed by this huge golem called Astaroth."  
"That's too bad." There wasn't really much emotion in her voice.  
"I somehow doubt your sincerity."  
She grinned. "I'm just sort of desensitized to that sort of thing now. Besides, all that's on my mind is a nice, warm bath."  
  
As Ilya soaked in the tub, her thoughts wandered toward her family. Sure, she'd never gotten along with her sisters Miska and Anya, but she'd loved them nonetheless. And then there was Zhenya, her sister-in-law . Anatoli had loved her more than anything. And Chechnya, poor Chechnya, killed when he wasn't even a year old. Anatoli was beyond heartbroken when his wife and child had died; Ilya thought he'd just waste away from grief. But he still had her, and he had said that was enough to keep him going.  
Of course . she'd left home without his permission, and she was now worried about him. The poor idiot didn't have anything to do but try to get her to behave. Now that she was gone, he didn't have anything left .  
"Oh, well," Ilya said cheerfully. "If he's so bored and depressed, he can come and find me!" Then she thought about what she'd just said. He probably would, the jerk.  
Suddenly the door flew open, revealing none other than Kilik. The two stared at each other for what seemed like five minutes before Kilik's face turned red and he slowly shut the door, murmuring, " .sorry ." under his breath. When he was gone, Ilya turned a shade of scarlet almost as dark as her hair. Suddenly taking a bath wasn't so relaxing anymore.  
"What happened?" Maxi asked as she came back, fairly red in the face.  
  
"That guy saw me naked!" she growled. "I hate men!"  
"He probably didn't mean to ."  
"I don't care! Girls don't care if guys meant to or not, we just care that they did!"  
Maxi let out a chuckle. "Look, just let it go. You can't change the past. That's one thing I've learned the hard way."  
Ilya rolled her eyes. "Fancy hearing you say that, Mr. Revenge-is-my- only-goal-in-life!"  
"You're not much of a lady, so why does it bother you?"  
Ilya gasped and pointed an accusing finger at him. "You take that back! I'm a perfect lady!"  
He laughed again. "Alright, alright ." Maxi then stood up and stretched. "I think I'm gonna take a bath as well."  
"Make sure that guy doesn't walk in on you," said Ilya bitterly.  
When Maxi was finished, he walked back into the room, wearing nothing but a towel. (Hmmm . the possibilities are endless ..) Ilya was already asleep, so he just changed back into a pair of pants and followed suit.  
The next morning, Kilik had a question for Ilya. "Um . er . where did you get that scar on your chest?"  
Ilya gave him a look of confusion. "Scar .? What ." But then she remembered. "Oh, oh, that! It's a long story. Nothing you should concern yourself with." She thought for a moment, and then added, "Pervert."  
Kilik blushed and looked at the floor. "Yeah . I'm sorry about that, it was an accident. I'm really, really sorry."  
Maxi came up behind Ilya and put a heavy hand on her shoulder. "She forgives you, don't you, kiddo?"  
"I thought I told you, I'm not a kid!" she growled, slapping his hand away. "You're such a jerk."  
"And you're a brat."  
"C'mon, why don't you let me see your scar?" he teased.  
She scowled and stomped on his foot. "You're soooo gross!" she wailed, covering her chest with her arms. "I'm not into older men."  
"Well, you're perfectly safe, since I don't like little girls."  
Annabelle laughed. "How adorable you two are! Anyway, I've prepared breakfast for you. Come, sit down." The four travelers obeyed, and they ate a quick meal of pastries and fruit.  
"Leaving so soon?" Xianghua asked Ilya as the Russian girl packed made ready her backpack a bit later. Ilya turned to face her, grinning. Xianghua had followed her to the room she had shared with Maxi, and though Ilya wasn't looking for trouble, she'd be more than happy to help the Chinese girl stir some up.  
"I'm just getting ready in case Maxi decides we're leaving." Xianghua visibly flinched. "I'm really only tagging along, though - I couldn't find my way out the front door without help."  
Xianghua let down her guard and smiled a little. "Has Maxi mentioned his first quest for Soul Edge?"  
"Huh? There was a first one?"  
"Never mind ."  
"So, I take it you like him, eh?" Ilya gave her a mischievous smile. "I heard you talking to him in Lyon."  
The girl blushed. "You . you did? Well, uh . Kilik and I went with him to search for Soul Edge four years ago, and we thought he'd been killed, but . I'm . we're so happy he's alive, even if he doesn't remember us." Tears welled up in her eyes.  
"Ilya?" a voice asked from the hallway. It was Maxi. "Ilya, are you ready to head out?"  
She smiled at him, but felt bad for Xianghua all the same. "Yeah, I guess. Can't we wait just a bit?"  
"Alright, but remember, there's a time limit on this thing." He left for the main room, presumably to talk to Annabelle.  
Ilya turned back to Xianghua. "There, I bought you some time. Go talk to him again."  
Xianghua brightened. "Thanks . thank you so much!" She gave Ilya a tight hug and skipped off to talk to him.  
Ilya hated being touched. She had tolerated the hug, but made no effort to return it. When the Chinese girl left, she shrugged away her revulsion and took out a whetstone to sharpen Russkaya Pravda's blade, however unnecessary it was (the blade of the knife never really needed sharpening; the last time someone had taken a whetstone to it was before her time, approximately twenty-three years ago). It always calmed her down to have something to do. She didn't know why she was so on-edge, so frustrated, but she thought it would pacify her nerves.  
When Maxi entered the room half an hour later, Ilya was singing quietly to herself in Russian. Her voice was clear and melodious, the most beautiful he'd ever heard. He gave a short rap on the door to announce his arrival, and she stopped and gave him a partially startled look. "Um, hi," he said with uncharacteristic coyness. "That . that was a nice song you were singing."  
Ilya turned her attention back to her knife. "Oh, thanks. It's an old folk song from Kolmyr."  
"The mountains you're from?"  
"Uh-huh."  
"If you don't mind my asking, what's it about?"  
"Two lovers who're torn apart by war. The girl travels a long way to find the man, who's a soldier. In the end she ends up dead, but his tears bring her back to life."  
"That was a beautiful song. Can . can I hear it again?"  
Ilya took a deep breath and started over. As she sang the final few notes, she closed her eyes and smiled. "Ah, I love that story." Then, realizing she was getting sappy in front of someone, she shook her head as if to clear it of such thoughts. "Anyway, what's going on?"  
"Let's get out of here. Just the two of us."  
"What?!"  
"No, no, nothing like that - it's just that I'm getting sick of those two trying to convince me that I know them."  
"Why don't you be a man and face your feelings? Maybe you do know them. Besides, you should give that chick a chance. She seems nice."  
Maxi frowned. "What feelings?"  
"Never mind. Anyway, why are you so enthused about taking me along now?"  
He paused, considering the question carefully. "Hmmm . I suppose because you keep me company, and you don't pester me much."  
" 'Much'?"  
"Well, you're a total brat, but you're not that bad." Maxi laughed as an irate Ilya hurled a shoe at him. "Ah, come on, take a joke."  
"You're mean."  
"Whatever. Are you ready to go?"  
"Sure, sure . but I'll have to thank Annabelle on my way out and give her some cash-money for letting us crash here."  
"You don't have to worry about that; I offered to pay her for allowing us to stay, but she said it was her pleasure. I also thanked her kindly."  
Maxi and Ilya grabbed their things and headed out the door and into the forest that ran along the Rhone. They hadn't gone fifty feet before Maxi was hit in the neck by several small darts.  
  
Yeah, that's sorta a cliffhanger, but it should get some of y'all to read the next chapter, right? Hope you like it so far. Oh, and if you're thinking that because of the song Ilya sings that I'm going to have her die and Maxi's tears bring her back, NO WAY. I really don't like having the outcomes of stories be so obviously spelled out in early chapters. Besides, that would be totally stupid. And in case you're wondering, cash-money is what I call cash. No reason, really, just because I heard one of my brothers call it that and it stuck. Heh.  
  
Next: Maxi's wounded, and things are gonna get a tad risqué. I'm not joking . I'm thinking of making this a lemon. Hee hee . steamy. 


	5. Champloo

Chapter Four: Champloo  
  
Yay! New chapter! And by the way, from what I understand, "champloo" is Okinawan for "rumble." I learned that by researching a new anime that's being planned called Samurai Champloo, which has art design by the dude who did the character designs for FF:U and Ashita no Nadja. Just thought I'd throw that in here, Maxi being from Okinawa and all.  
  
Warning: This one may get risqué - just a tad bit, though. This is where the R rating comes from, folks! This and subsequent chapters.  
  
Maxi: Yahooo! That means Ilya and I are gonna do it, right?  
  
Sansaku (my yaoi/lemon loving cat-demon alter ego): No! I mean yes! I mean ... whatever, shut your Elvis-look-alike mouth!  
  
Maxi: Why, you little ... the fitting Soil to use against you has been decided!  
  
(Sansaku whacks him over the head with a script from FF:U.)  
  
Sansaku: Final Fantasy:Unlimited is done with! No more Kaze references!  
  
(Note: Kanna Nobutoshi, Maxi's seiyuu, also did the voice for Kaze in FF:U. I just found this out the other day while watching the fansubs, and, incidentally, Kaze is the person I envision when I write about Ilya's brother Anatoli. Kinda interesting - well, to me, at least. Whoa, everything is connected somehow ...)  
  
Sansaku: Okay! So on with the fic! I'll be taking over for a while, since BillysLittleCowgirl is shy about writing romantic things.  
  
(Suddenly Chobi appears out of nowhere and chomps onto one of Talim's pigtails, then starts dragging her around as she screams in Yuka Imai's voice - ARGH, it's irritating.)  
  
Sansaku: ......Right. This chapter is a bit risqué, but not as much as later chapters, should this little experiment prove successful. Anyway, PLEASE review! Just no flames ...  
  
Maxi pulled the four tiny darts from his throat, just left of his Adam's apple, and examined them. They'd left behind a burning sensation, and he was already starting to feel faint.  
He faintly heard Ilya drawing her dagger to his side. She threw it with great strength toward the source of the darts, and he heard an anguished grunt from within the underbrush. Then Ilya's wolf form rushed into said underbrush to return moments later, with blood staining the fur on its right hind leg.  
Maxi had collapsed. "Maxi!" Ilya's voice sounded very far away. His head was swimming in a numb, sleepy feeling, and his vision was rapidly blurring. Within seconds everything went black.  
  
He awoke a bit later, lying on a soft bed. Maxi looked frantically from side to side, finding none other than Xianghua in a chair next to him. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot - she'd obviously been crying. "Where ... where's Ilya?" he choked out.  
"Annabelle's doing her best to stitch up her knee."  
"Is she alright?!" he demanded, trying to sit up but failing miserably due to his body, which felt like it weighed a thousand pounds.  
"She's fine, it's just a cut." The Chinese girl was getting fairly irritated with his fixation on Ilya.  
"Can I talk to her?"  
Xianghua stormed into the next room, where Annabelle was wrapping a bandage around Ilya's knee, which had been cut nearly to the bone. "He wants to talk to you," she said in a low growl, then headed off to parts unknown.  
Ilya limped into the room and sat down on the bed, her hip dangerously close to his chest. He smiled up at her, his face pained, and she found herself smiling back in spite of herself. "You look awful."  
He closed his dark eyes. "Did you bring me back here?"  
"Yeah. It wasn't easy, mind you - you're awful heavy." She recalled how she'd nearly broken her back while dragging him back to Annabelle's house, with one of his arms slung over her shoulders.  
"I want to thank you for saving me. What was that, anyway?"  
"Dunno." She shrugged. "Whoever that was poisoned those darts. You're lucky Annabelle knew what kind of poison it was and how to treat it, or you'd be dead. You should thank her."  
Maxi grinned. "I know I haven't known you for very long, and I've been really rude to you, but ..." His hand found hers, albeit with great difficulty, and she blushed slightly. "I ... I'd really miss you if you weren't around."  
If that was some half-assed attempt to say he loved her, Ilya didn't know, but it made her uncomfortable nonetheless. She partially frowned. He didn't mean that. He was a big jerk. Maxi raised the hand that was holding hers to her face and caressed her cheek. Ilya's heart began to race at his touch. What was he doing? "Um ... er ... I'm not going anywhere for the time being," she said awkwardly.  
He struggled greatly as he sat up. Had Ilya not been so shocked by his uncharacteristic behavior, she would have stopped him from doing so. "Listen, Maxi . you have a really high fever. That's why you're thinking like this. You're just delirious." Ilya shook her head in disbelief.  
"No, that's not true. I've never seen things so clearly in my life! I love you, Ilya." As soon as the words escaped his lips, he wished they hadn't. But, he thought, there's no turning back now ...  
He tentatively put his hand behind her head and pulled her close. Maxi anxiously licked his lips and then gently pressed them against hers.  
Ilya was initially too surprised to resist and in fact nearly lost herself in the kiss, but after a few moments she shoved him away and slapped him. Maxi put a hand to his throbbing cheek and smiled. "And here I was, expecting a punch. I guess you are more of a lady than I thought."  
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she shrieked.  
"Listening to what you said ... you told me to be a man and face my feelings." He flashed her a charming smile.  
She frowned in response. True, she had said that, but she hadn't meant for him to face his feelings concerning her. Now didn't know what to do - she was stuck between Maxi's feelings for her and the feelings she might have for him. "But, I ." Her voice died in her throat.  
"Look, I'm not looking for an answer just yet. I just want you to know how I feel. And if it turns out you don't feel the same, I can always blame this whole escapade on the poison."  
She grinned. "You're an idiot. Anyway, I'm going out to check if there are any more of those people outside."  
"But you're hurt - "  
"Don't patronize me - I'm not a little kid! Besides, I'll be a wolf, so it won't hurt that much. I'll put the strain on my other legs."  
Maxi smiled at her. "I'm sorry I kissed you."  
Ilya remembered that he did, and frowned again. "You're a perv. I can't believe you did that."  
"Because I love you," he replied matter-of-factly.  
She rolled her eyes. "Look, love me all you like, but that doesn't mean I'll ever love you back." She pivoted on her heel and stormed away (although she was limping), and felt hot tears building up in her eyes.  
She was livid that he'd stolen her first kiss. That pervert who'd probably had a hundred women and not cared a smidgen about them. He really seemed the type, the jerk.  
But ...  
Ilya paused halfway down the hallway and looked back at the entrance to the room she'd just left. He said he loved me, she thought. Then, realizing she was talking about the same Maxi whom Kilik had told her the previous day was a born playboy, she let out a frustrated growl and stomped her good foot. That jackass! I'll bet he's said that to every woman he's been with! I'll never forgive him! Never, never, NEVER!  
"What did he say?" Annabelle asked when Ilya came to the living room. Ilya either didn't hear her or didn't want to answer, Annabelle couldn't tell which. "Ilya, dear?"  
"He's a jerk and I never want to talk to him again!" was the angry reply, and she left the house, slamming the door behind her.  
"What was that all about?" Kilik wondered aloud. Xianghua frowned and headed back to Maxi's room.  
"What did you do to Ilya? She was really angry."  
Maxi, who'd lain back down, turned his head to look at her. She was standing in the doorway, arms folded across her chest. "Why do you want to know?"  
"Ilya's ... a nice person. She's been really kind to me ever since we met, and I want to know what happened."  
Maxi's dark eyes returned to the ceiling. "I kissed her."  
Xianghua fought to keep her jaw from dropping. "What?"  
"I kissed her and told her I loved her. Then she got mad and ran off to God-knows-where."  
Xianghua's eyes filled with tears. "You ... you love her?"  
"Of course."  
The Chinese girl ran out of the house and found Ilya sitting by the river, humming an old children's song. "You ..." Xianghua began.  
"Hm?" Ilya looked up amiably, smiling.  
"Maxi ... give Maxi back to me!" she commanded, tears spilling over onto her cheeks. "I'm the one who loves him! I've loved him ever since I first met him!"  
"You can have him," replied the Russian, with a do-whatever-you-like- I'm-not-stopping-you expression plastered across her pretty face. "I don't want him. I hate the son of a bitch."  
Xianghua sniffed and wiped her eyes with the long bell sleeves of her shirt. "Look at me ... getting all emotional when you can't help it. I'm sorry, Ilya! You're so nice ... you even gave me a chance to talk to Maxi again! I'm so sorry."  
"Look, don't worry about it. Chicks tend to get overly sensitive about stuff like that."  
Xianghua laughed. "How long have you known Maxi?"  
"A few days."  
"That's all? You act like you've known each other your whole lives."  
"Yeah, well, he's sorta like my big brother Anatoli." Ilya laid herself down on the grassy ground, closing her eyes. "A jerk, mostly."  
The Chinese girl giggled. "Really?"  
"Yeah, really. Maxi said I reminded him of someone he knew. Maybe that's why we act like that."  
"I'm jealous of you, Ilya."  
Ilya's eyes snapped open. She turned to look at Xianghua, who was smiling sadly. "What? Why?"  
"Because you get to travel with him, just like Kilik and I used to. And because you're so confident and strong. Dragging Maxi back on your own must've been hard, especially on that bad leg of yours."  
Jealous? Of me? Ilya thought. She smiled to herself and sighed. I'm jealous of you, Xianghua ... because you're so honest with yourself.  
The two talked for nearly three hours under the mid-afternoon sun - or, at least, Xianghua talked and Ilya merely listened, occasionally throwing in a comment or two. By the time it was dark, Xianghua was all talked out, and the two headed back to the house.  
The two girls bid farewell to each other and the Chinese headed back to the room she shared with Kilik. Maybe I should apologize to Maxi ... Ilya thought as she headed to her own room.  
  
"Maxi ..." a voice whispered.  
His eyes opened; he'd been sleeping, albeit restlessly. It was dark, and he couldn't see anything, but he felt someone sitting next to him on the bed.  
"Hey, I'm sorry about earlier." The voice was Ilya's.  
"Oh, uh ... don't worry about it," he stammered, quite nervous about the situation.  
She rested her hand on his chest and bent down to kiss him. "I thought about what you said, and I decided ..." Her voice died in her throat as her lips moved to his neck. Ilya climbed atop him and caressed his shoulders.  
"Er ..." was all Maxi could manage to say.  
"Don't worry, take it easy," she whispered in his ear, and then bit his earlobe. She smiled as she heard his sharp intake of breath and felt his body shudder. "You're injured, remember?"  
He felt paralyzed as she began to fiddle with his belt buckle. Suddenly the door creaked open, and a dark silhouette appeared against the light from the hallway.  
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Ilya shrieked, noticing that Maxi was in a quite compromising position with some unknown person who looked a bit like her.  
"Huh?" Maxi demanded, and the girl he was with drew a tiny knife from her belt. As she moved to stab him in the throat, Ilya tackled her. The two tumbled off the bed and Ilya held the pirate's would-be killer on the floor.  
"Would you mind explaining this to me!?" she snarled as she struggled to subdue her look-alike.  
"I ..." was all he could say.  
Ilya slammed the doppelganger's hand against the floor, knocking the knife out of it, and punched her in the face to stop her struggling, which was becoming very irritating. It was enough to render her unconscious, and Ilya stood to face Maxi.  
"You ..." she began, but was far too angry to continue. She just shook her head and left as Kilik, Xianghua and Annabelle entered the room, startled from the commotion.  
"Hey, she kinda looks like Ilya," Annabelle said cheerfully, pointing to the girl on the floor. "The hair is a different color, but they look quite alike, no?"  
Kilik rolled his eyes, and Xianghua fumed. Maxi looked distraught and confused, and wished to God he had realized earlier that Ilya probably wouldn't have done that.  
By the next morning Maxi was feeling better, and he sought out Ilya to apologize. She was, as she had been the day before, by the river, sitting with her back against a tree. Her eyes were closed and he couldn't tell if she were awake or not, but decided the sooner he talked to her, the better.  
"Um ..." he started anxiously.  
"What?" Ilya asked, not bothering to open her eyes.  
"I came to ... say I'm sorry." When she didn't answer, he continued. "I really thought it was you ..."  
"Thought it was me, huh?" she shouted as her eyes flew open and her voice became angry. "I'd never do anything of that sort with you! I'd never let you TOUCH me! And besides, you can do whatever the hell you want! It's not like we're a couple or anything, so you don't have to bother apologizing!"  
"Of course I have to apologize," he countered, frowning. "Don't you remember what I told you?"  
"Well, DUH. But it's entirely stupid, you know. You can't love me; you haven't even known me for a week! Besides, you're the player type. Go find yourself some floozy in a bar, and live out your life with her."  
Ouch, he thought. "Well, I deserved that. But it doesn't change the way I feel about you."  
"Well, stop feeling that way!" she ordered, and Maxi realized how immature she really was. "I'm serious, I'll NEVER love you back!"  
He laughed, causing her to let out a noise sort of like a cross between a snort and a sigh. "What's so funny?"  
"I'm sorry, it's just ... you haven't had much experience out in the world, have you? People's emotions don't change just because someone orders them around. I realize you may think I'm fickle and peccant, but if it makes any difference to you, I haven't been like that in four years."  
"I don't care!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air. "I still hate you."  
He smiled, his face full of fondness for her. "So you've finally made up your mind, eh?"  
Ilya ignored him. "Do you know what I was doing before I walked in on you and that chick that was gonna kill you?" He shook his head. "I was coming to say I was sorry for acting so mean when you kissed me."  
Maxi's stomach sank. So he really had blown his chances with Ilya ...  
"I ... I know you're angry."  
"Livid," she corrected.  
"But I'll need you on the journey to Marseille."  
"I know."  
"Are you still gonna tag along?"  
"Of course. I couldn't find my way across the river without help."  
Maxi laughed. "Your sense of direction is that bad?"  
"Almost."  
"Hey, I'm sorry again for kissing you."  
"You'd better be."  
"Why?" he teased. "Was that your first kiss?"  
Ilya suddenly became interested in her fingernails. "Oh ..." Maxi said, finally understanding why she'd been so mad. Of course, he'd stolen many a kiss from women along his travels, and some had gotten pretty rattled, but none as angry as Ilya had been. "Er ... I just assumed you'd at least kissed someone before."  
"Oh, are you gonna make fun of me because I'm a total cherry?"  
He barely stifled a laugh. Somehow she didn't seem the type to use that term. "No, no ... it's better than finding out you're a total slut or something."  
Ilya let out a short laugh, and Maxi was pleased she'd let her guard down. "Oh," she said, suddenly becoming much more serious. "Annabelle questioned that ... girl you were with ..."  
"Er, what'd she say?" He was suddenly nervous and avoided eye contact with her.  
"Nothing much. Just that she's after you because she's taking orders from someone named Kunpaetku."  
"Kunpaetku ..." Maxi repeated in a barely audible whisper. He looked at her. "That's the name of the grand priest of Ares."  
  
Sansaku: Yeah, so that's it for now. I know, I know, it wasn't very lemony- fresh, but if you want it to be, just give me some feedback. See, I had a whole big risqué thing planned out but I decided it should be a little later in the story and I'm too damn lazy to undo the opening to the chapter where I explain it's dirty. So sue me.  
  
Maxi: I just can't believe little Ilya is a virgin ...  
  
Sansaku: Quiet, you. 


	6. Kunpaetku

Chapter Five: Kunpaetku  
  
Yay! Another chapter! Thankie soooo much to Crystal and Regina for their e- mails, and I'd like to thank those who reviewed, too. Heh, I'm going on like I've won an Academy Award or something. Anyway, here goes - this is where the very slight AU starts. Hopey you likey. And Ilya is actually a guy's name. Oops. She's named for a Russian violinist, whom I did not know was a man. (Not like it matters. And only the first name.)  
  
"So? What's that matter?" Ilya asked, raising an eyebrow.  
"Astaroth was created to serve Ares, God of War. He was supposed to find Soul Edge until I killed him ..."  
"And ...?"  
"That's why these people have been after me - Astaroth's been revived, and they want to keep me away from him."  
"So I guess you'd better give up on your dreams of revenge, eh?"  
"No! I can't rest until I destroy that monster for good!" He'd raised his voice, and Ilya had flinched at the sound of it. "Er ... sorry." He paused. "Is that girl still around? I want to question her some more."  
"Nah. Annabelle turned her back for a second and she was gone. I really wanted to know how she could imitate my voice so well."  
"Yeah, I was wondering about that, too."  
"I guess we'd better get going, then," was all she said afterwards.  
"You still want to travel with me, then?"  
She shrugged. "I have nothing better to do."  
Ilya and Maxi gathered their things and bid Annabelle farewell. "Where are you going?" Xianghua asked as they headed out the door.  
"Marseille." Maxi was getting irritated by her constant interrogations.  
"Really? Why?"  
"There's someone we're meeting there."  
"Who?"  
He thought he was going to snap, but he relaxed when he heard Ilya burst out laughing. "I don't know his name, but it seems he can help us."  
"Hey, Ilya?" Kilik asked. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"  
"What? Oh, sure." She looked back at Maxi. "Be back in a minute, okay?"  
She and Kilik went outside and walked just a bit. When they were about fifty feet or so from the house, Kilik asked her, "Do you love Maxi?"  
"What?" Her reply was brusque.  
"I was just wondering ... because, you see ..."  
"What, you love him, too?"  
He blushed and shook his head. "No, no, it's just that ... Xianghua's loved him since they first met, four years ago, and I don't want to see her get hurt."  
"So you like her, huh?"  
He nodded. "Yeah, I do."  
"Then go after her. Tell her, for God's sake!"  
"What?"  
"You can't sit on your ass and expect happiness to fall into your lap, you dolt! You gotta get out there and make yourself heard! If you love her, you have to tell her. You have to do everything you can to make her realize that! If you don't, you'll spend the rest of your life saying 'if only.' Besides, helping the girl you love get someone else should only be done as a last resort. If she hates you, THEN you can help her get her guy."  
Kilik smiled sheepishly. "You're right, Ilya. I should listen to you. So you should take your own advice - go tell Maxi you love him."  
"What? I don't love him!"  
"But you asked me if I loved him, TOO. That indicates you have feelings, you know."  
"I was referring to that Xianghua chick."  
"Okay, if you say so ..."  
"What's THAT supposed to mean?" She narrowed her heterochromic eyes at him.  
"Just ... the way you get mad at him over certain things ... it makes it look like you do," he replied with a shrug and a grin.  
Ilya shook her head. "I don't. How could I? The perv kissed me."  
"So?"  
"Without permission," she said slowly, emphasizing every syllable as though she were talking to a troublesome three-year-old.  
"Oh."  
"See? He's a total jerk."  
"Well, I traveled with him a few years back, and I've got to say, he must really like you."  
"What makes you say that?"  
"He may be a playboy, but he's never put so much effort into one woman. He's more of the tawdry one-night stand kinda guy. But you ... he's never told a woman he loved them until he met you, as far as I know. He must really love you."  
"As far as you know," she repeated, giving him a look that said, plain as day, 'You just dug yourself a hole, there, moron.' "I bet he just wants to get me in the sack." She paused. "How many women has he been with, by the way?"  
"Er ... about thirteen on the journey we all took together ..."  
"Gross. I wonder how many illegitimate kids that guy has."  
She said it with such a matter-of-fact (and sort of apathetic) attitude that Kilik couldn't help himself - he started laughing. "I don't know. I'm not so sure I want to know, either."  
Ilya sighed. "He's some character ... in a manner of speaking. But I guess I'm stuck with him. We should get going."  
"Oh ... you never answered my question."  
"Eh?"  
"About how you got that scar."  
She sighed again. "I was trying to save my nephew from a pirate and I got cut open. That's all." She paused and thought for a moment, then smiled. "Guess it isn't such a long story after all, huh?"  
"Pirate?"  
"Yeah. Cervantes de Leon. Since you're so hung up on Soul Edge, I assume you know who he is."  
"Uh ... yes."  
"And ever since then I've been a pirate hunter. It's made me a lot of money, so it's not all bad." She grinned cheerily, but Kilik knew the memories pained her. He himself hid a tragic past behind his peaceful smile.  
"But, you know, Maxi ..." Kilik's voice died in his throat. Ilya raised an eyebrow, quite interested in the urgency that filled his words. Obviously the girl didn't know Maxi himself was a pirate; otherwise she'd probably beat the hell out of him and continue the journey alone. "Never mind, I was thinking of something else ..." he added quickly, scratching the back of his head.  
Though not entirely convinced, Ilya nodded and started back toward the house. She opened the door to find Xianghua kissing Maxi. Although the pirate didn't seem to be enjoying it (rather, he seemed as surprised as she was), she took in a deep breath, and Kilik covered his ears, knowing what was coming.  
"You stupid JACKASS!" she shouted, throwing her entire backpack at him. It hit him in the shoulder and fell to the floor with a thud. "You're nothing but a liar and a pervert! I never want to see you again!" With that, she pivoted on her heel and stormed off into the woods.  
Kilik stared after her for a moment and then turned to face Maxi and Xianghua. "What ... what's going on?"  
"It wasn't me!" Maxi exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "This was all her!" He pointed at Xianghua. "Aw, hell, that kid's gonna get lost. I have to go find her ..."  
"No, you shouldn't," Kilik protested, stopping him by grabbing his arm as he headed out the door. "She's not gonna want to talk to you. I'll find her and explain it wasn't your fault."  
"Thanks, kid." Maxi then turned to Xianghua. "What were you doing, kissing me like that? She's gonna hate me even more now!"  
Kilik rolled his dark eyes as he left in search of Ilya. He jogged toward the thinly wooded area by the river, and quickly found her sitting in the boughs of a large tree. "Hey, Ilya, it wasn't Maxi's fault. Xianghua kissed him out of the blue - he didn't want her to." When she did not reply, he looked up at her with a grin. "Come on down, let's talk about it."  
She glared down at him, and he noticed there were angry tears in her eyes. "I don't want to talk about it. He's a jerk, there's nothing more to it."  
"How'd you get up there so fast?" he asked, changing the subject, hoping to initiate a conversation. "You were barely out here a minute before I got here."  
"I spent most of my childhood climbing trees because Anatoli and Mishka used to pick on me a lot."  
He laughed. "Well, it's kinda hard to talk up to you like this, so why don't you come down here?"  
Realizing he wasn't going to leave her alone, Ilya leapt down and landed gracefully on her feet. It was an eight-foot fall, and Kilik was impressed she could make it without tottering even a little upon landing. "Whatcha here for?" she asked, frowning and putting her hands in her pockets.  
"I came to talk to you about Maxi."  
She groaned moodily. Just the thing she DIDN'T want to talk about. "Why?"  
"You notice how you got mad when you saw him kissing another girl? You DO like him, don't you?"  
"Are we gonna get into a 'like' and 'like-like' talk here?" she inquired irritably. "'Cause that's kid stuff."  
He smiled warmly. "You're avoiding the question."  
Ilya's gaze fell to the ground. "Okay, so I don't hate him," she mumbled.  
"Ah, now we're getting somewhere." He knelt down a little, placing his hands on his knees, as if talking to a small child. "So, maybe you should listen to your own advice, huh? Tell him you like him?"  
She nodded grumpily, and Kilik realized she wasn't as mature as she at first seemed. She was probably the same emotional age as a twelve-year- old. "So, Ilya, let's head back, alright?"  
" ... Okay."  
Resisting the urge to extend a hand for her to hold as they walked back (it was kind of like having a conversation with a little sister), Kilik instead put a hand on her back and slowly guided her toward the house. Annabelle greeted them, and gave Kilik a wink. As Ilya started down the hallway without him, the old woman said to him, "I think they'll make a cute couple. Maxi's in their room, trying to come up with the best way to apologize. It's sweet."  
Indeed, Maxi was sitting sideways on a wooden chair, his back against the wall, lost in thought. He was mulling over what to say to Ilya when she returned...  
IF she returned.  
He shook the thought from his head and frowned. Just when he thought everything was clear for him to make his move, something got in the way and crapped all over his ambitions. He ran a hand through his hair, wondering if Ilya would listen to Kilik.  
His thoughts were interrupted when the door opened and an angry- looking Ilya entered the room. At second glance, she looked more determined than angry, which was perhaps a good sign. But Maxi wouldn't dare let his guard down.  
"Look, Ilya, I -" he began.  
"Er, I came to ..." she started at the same time.  
The two looked at each other and laughed a little. Their simultaneous words had lightened the mood a little, and Maxi started again.  
"I realize you're mad, and you rightfully should be, but I want you to know, it was only halfway my fault."  
"Halfway?"  
"Yeah, because she came at me but I was too surprised to do anything to stop it."  
"I came here to say that I don't hate you and it's entirely possible that I like you as more than a friend and I'm sorry I overreact to everything and I get mad and yell at you all the time," Ilya said so quickly Maxi could hardly follow. It seemed she was forcing the words out before she changed her mind or lost her courage, he couldn't tell which.  
"So you don't hate me?" He smiled warmly. She shook her head. "Huh, that's a relief."  
"Your little buddy Kilik is really nice, by the way," she said quickly, changing the subject out of sheer discomfort. "He was really understanding about the whole Cervantes thing."  
Maxi's spirits sank. He remembered that she hated pirates, and if he wanted a full-blown relationship with her, he had to come clean. "Ilya, come sit on the bed," urged, and patted the bed, which was facing his chair. She obliged, and he took her hands in his own. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you, but I was too afraid to."  
"Yeah?" she asked, a suspicious frown replacing her charmingly shy expression.  
"Before I tell you, I want you to know that I love you more than anything, even though I've only known you for a while. Nothing will ever change that." She nodded, growing more anxious by the second. "I'm ..." he began, and his voice caught. He frowned and closed his eyes, gathering his nerve, and then opened them again, looking at her sadly. "I'm a pirate."  
There were a few moments of uncomfortable silence where Ilya neither spoke nor moved. "Or, at least, I was," he continued. "After my crew and my brother were murdered, I gave up on that lifestyle. I'm sorry, Ilya. I should've told you sooner."  
She nodded, her face emotionless. She refused to meet his eyes. "You should have," she agreed quietly. Ilya stood up and began to walk away, letting Maxi's hands slide away from hers.  
"Ilya ..." he said, his face full of regret. She stopped in the doorway, her back to him.  
"Don't ..." she started in a growl, her shoulders hunching. "Don't talk to me." And as Ilya left the room, Maxi's hopes for a relationship faded.  
  
Oooooh, there're so many things wrong with their sort-of-friendship/budding relationship. Maxi's being honest so he can further their relationship, but what's going to happen now that Ilya knows he's a pirate? Well, I said drama, even if it's edging on melodrama. Heheh. Anyway, there's more angsty stuff to come, so keep reading (please)!  
  
Oh, BTW, Kunpaetku is the actual name of the guy who created Astaroth. Just read his profile.  
  
Next: Ilya starts out on her own, but when things go awry, will Maxi be able to save her? (This will be a naughty chapter, full of nudity and steamy stuff. This is the whole big thingie I had planned for "Champloo", and it's a little bit unnecessary. Kinda entertaining, though.) Yeah, the next chapter is ALMOST done, and I may post it as soon as tomorrow. 


	7. Begging for Forgiveness

Chapter Six: Begging for Forgiveness  
  
Yo. This will be the last chapter that takes place in Annabelle's house, just so you know. I understand that I've been ignoring the "journey" part of the journey to Marseille, but it's just for the first few chapters. That's right, folks - this is a long fanfic with no end in sight. (Although I've already written the ending and planned the sequel - but enough of that. I was bored.)  
  
'Okay', Ilya thought to herself as she walked along the Rhone by herself. 'Just keep going straight. Don't turn your head at all, because you'll only get confused. If you turn even a little, you'll end up going the other way. Just keep going THAT way. I can do this. I don't need him. I don't need anyone. All I need is concentration.'  
After a few hours of travel, she was starting to get frightened and upset. It was now dark, and since demons and monsters ran rampant in Europe, she didn't want to be outside, especially by herself. When she felt she couldn't go any further, she knelt down on the ground, drew an arrow in the soil with Russkaya Pravda (so she wouldn't lose her way come morning), and took her thick trench coat from her backpack. Curling up against a tree, she pulled her coat tightly around her and tried her best to suppress her tears.  
'I'm going to cry', she thought, horrified. 'I can't believe it. That bastard is going to make me cry.'  
It wasn't enough that he'd been a pirate. No, if he'd told her straight off, she might've overlooked that. But he'd been lying to her the entire time they'd known each other. He knew she hated pirates, and perhaps that was reason enough to hide it from her, but if he wanted a meaningful relationship with her, why hadn't he said so sooner?  
Stop thinking about it, she told herself. 'Just forget about him. It's your fault anyway. You wanted to travel with him. You started to have feelings for him. You've no one to blame but yourself.'  
"No, it's HIS fault!" she growled, forgetting that she was quite vulnerable to whatever might be lurking in the forest. Tears streamed down her cheeks, leaving behind a burning sensation. She hated herself for crying. She hated herself even more for starting to fall for Maxi, that lying bastard. She was cold and scared and lonely, and wanted nothing more than her parents.  
Her mother would have comforted her; whenever the other children from the village picked on her for being different, her mother would take her to the couch and lay Ilya's head in her lap. "Don't worry, Ilya, dear," she'd say. "You're a very special girl, that's why the other children act that way. They just don't understand. But I'll always be here for you."  
'What a crock,' she thought bitterly.  
And her father would have protected her. She was not the youngest of the Strucov children but she was indeed the smallest, so her siblings would make fun of her, even her younger sister, Anya. But her father was always there to defend her. Whenever Anatoli's teasing became too much (at which point it was outright bullying), he'd get between them and punish Anatoli for being so rude. And when she was only five and attacked by a snow demon, her father had been there to save her.  
"Daddy ... Mama ..." she sobbed softly, letting the tears flow freely. "I wish you were here. I'm scared. I don't know what to do."  
And from the trees, four pairs of gold eyes watched her intently. ***  
  
Kilik confronted a depressed Maxi, deeply concerned. "What happened?"  
"I told her I was a pirate," he grumbled as he lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.  
"Is that why she left?"  
"Obviously."  
"Go after her."  
"What? Are you kidding? She'd call me a stalker, and that'd be one more on the list of things I am or I do that make her hate me!"  
"You love her, don't you?" Kilik raised his eyebrows.  
"Of course."  
"Ilya's the one who told me that if you love someone, you should do everything in your power to make them realize that." He paused and then added, "Right after she called me an idiot."  
Maxi smiled despite his intense misery. "Sounds like her."  
"So what are you waiting for? Get out there and find her. Drag her back kicking and screaming if you have to. What if she gets lost, or gets hurt? What'll you do then?"  
"Damn it, twerp, you're right!" Maxi exclaimed as he sat bolt upright. "I've gotta go find that immature wolf-girl and make sure she's okay!" He ran out into the hallway, but came back into the room to give Kilik a polite bow. "Thanks for the pep talk, kid." Then he took off to find Ilya.  
Kilik, meanwhile, was deeply confused. "Wolf-girl?" he wondered aloud. ***  
  
After a good half hour of crying, Ilya felt somewhat refreshed. Letting out all her anger and sadness had a sort of cleansing effect, and she was able to clear her mind. Even her wounded knee hurt less. But that might have been because she'd stopped walking on it. Whatever. She felt she could finally relax and sleep for a few hours ...  
... were it not for the snapping of a twig behind her.  
She was on her feet in half a second, her weapon drawn and held out in front of her. The moonlight illuminated the area well enough to see, and she counted four hulking demons before her. "Aw, damn," she said. She was skilled in combat, but she wasn't even sure she could take down ONE of these monstrosities. They were huge.  
The nearest one made a dive for her, and she side-stepped its advance and stabbed it in the eye. It roared in pain, its scaly hands covering its face. There was no time for her to pay it any mind, however, as the other three attacked. The reptilian creatures bore no weapons but their claws were as long as knives and glinted cruelly in the dim light. If they got her cornered, she was done for. It looked as though they could cut her in two with one swipe.  
As if reading her thoughts, one raked its claws at her; fortunately, she managed to dodge the attack, but she'd forgotten the one she'd turned her back on. As she leapt backward it advanced, and hit her in the back. Searing pain shot through her body, and she elbowed it in what she assumed were its ribs. Its body was soft, and she knew she'd done it some harm, but it looked like her number was up.  
'I might as well go down fighting,' she thought, a strange sort of smile spreading across her face. Since she held her weapon the opposite way a sword was held (Strucov Long-Arm Fencing was a strange style, indeed), it was easy for her to bury the blade in its side. It made a horrid screeching sound and backed away, but the other three were mere inches away from her.  
She punched one in its snakelike snout and ducked under its attack; she made a sweeping kick and knocked it off its feet. But another gave her a fierce headbutt in the stomach as she stood and knocked the wind out of her.  
Ilya fell onto her back on the ground, knowing her time had come. Had she known she would die so young, perhaps she would have done more with her life except hunt pirates for money. Or maybe she would have given in to her feelings and allowed Maxi to be her lover. The demon's jaws were finding their way to her throat, and she closed her eyes, praying Anatoli wouldn't come looking for her only to find rumors of her death.  
There was a sickening smack as something crushed the offending creature's skull. Ilya's eyes snapped open, and she found Maxi standing over her, brandishing his nunchaku. "You okay?" he asked. She looked up at him in disbelief, but nodded nonetheless. He smiled fondly at her, thankful he'd made it in time. Ilya slowly got to her feet and got ready for the impending fight. She felt as though a rib or two was broken, but she'd already made an ass out of herself in front of Maxi, and dared not make herself seem any weaker.  
As Maxi broke one of the demons' knees with a simple kick, Ilya tackled another and held it to the ground as she slit its throat. It died almost instantly, and Ilya got to her feet, but she didn't see the third approaching from her right side - her blind side. It hit her hard, and as she fell into the icy waters of the Rhone, she hit her head on a rock, rendering her unconscious. Luckily she landed in a rather shallow, gentle pool, her head above water, but Maxi knew she'd get hypothermia if he didn't get to her fast.  
"Damn it, get out of my way!" he shouted as he dispatched the demon whose leg he'd broken, which had latched onto his arm with gleaming fangs. The puncture wounds were not deep, and he had quite the tolerance for pain. He started toward the river, but the last remaining monster leapt into his way. He hit it square in the jaw with Soryuju, but even that didn't knock it over. It tried to cut him to ribbons with its claws, but Maxi was far too fast, and was out of the way before the creature was halfway done with its attack. He grabbed its arm, twisted it around, and snapped its neck with his bare hands. By then he was able to wade out and get Ilya.  
He cradled her in his arms; she'd been in the river for scarcely five minutes, but already she was shivering. He grabbed her coat, wrapped it around her, and started back toward the house.  
Thankfully she hadn't gotten far on her wounded leg, and with Maxi's speed it wasn't long before he arrived. He burst through the door, and Annabelle was ordering him to take her to the room they shared the moment he did.  
"Help me get her clothes off," she instructed.  
"Uh, yeah," he said, feeling a bit uncomfortable doing so. Xianghua and Kilik were in the doorway, and the latter blushed a bit and turned away. (He always struck me as the shy, goody-goody type - I'm sure he strikes a lot of ya'll that way, huh?)  
Annabelle pulled the covers over the now-naked Ilya and looked at Maxi. "You. Get your clothes off, you've got to warm her up."  
"Er ..." He looked shocked.  
"What?" Xianghua demanded.  
"You love her, so who better to do it? She needs body heat. It's common sense that body heat is the best thing for hypothermia. Now strip down and get in that bed!"  
"Why can't Kilik do it?" the Chinese girl protested. "He's already seen her naked."  
"Well, we all have now, dearie," Annabelle chuckled, momentarily forgetting the seriousness of the situation.  
"Why does a guy have to do it?" she asked, digging for any reason to keep Maxi's hands (and body, for that matter) off of Ilya.  
"We're a bit small, my dear. Now, Maxi, I suggest you get naked if you want to save her. Take your clothes off - ALL of them."  
When the others left the room, Maxi removed his clothing and climbed into bed next to Ilya, whose skin was cold to the touch. He embraced her and pulled her close, his chin resting on the top of her head. "Please don't die, kid," he whispered. "Your brother needs you. Hell, I need you, too."  
Annabelle brewed some tea for Kilik and Xianghua, but the Chinese girl had since gone to bed. "Was it really necessary for him to take ALL of his clothes off?" Kilik asked the old woman as the two sat in the living room.  
Annabelle winked and gave him a sly grin. "No." The young man sighed in reply, burying his face in his hands. The crazy old bat was hell-bent on seeing them together, it seemed.  
It felt strange to Maxi, having been with so many women but now just laying with one to save her life. He imagined how angry she'd be if she woke up ...  
"No," he said aloud, "WHEN. Not if."  
He pulled Ilya even closer, and wondered why he was so nervous about being with her in such a way. It was relaxing, but all the while his stomach was aflutter, just like it had been his first time. It had been so long ago he could barely recall it - he couldn't even remember the girl's name.  
His thoughts wandered to Ilya's body. She was far less flat-chested than she appeared, and Kilik was right - she did have a large scar across her chest. It ran from her lower right ribcage to just above her left breast. He absent-mindedly traced along it with his index finger. About nine and a half inches ... he thought. Must've been pretty serious.  
No wonder the girl always wore high-collared shirts. It was the only blemish on an otherwise perfect body.  
He frowned. What was he thinking? This wasn't one of his meaningless one-night stands. This was Ilya, the woman he loved, a woman that could die. Although ...  
The color was returning to her cheeks, and she stirred slightly. He smiled as she buried her face in his chest as she slept and cuddled in closer to the warmth of his skin; it reminded him of the first night they'd met, when she was a wolf, and had curled up against him. He was all at once excited, amused, and terrified she'd awake and strangle him, but it was worth it. Even if she hated him for this, he'd be glad he did it - not just because he was a man, but because he saved her.  
Annabelle came into the room and pulled down the covers enough to examine Ilya's face. "She looks a lot better, don't you think?" she asked Maxi, who nodded. "Well, maybe you should stay with her until morning, just to be safe."  
A slight flush crept into his cheeks. "I guess so ..."  
Annabelle left the room, where Kilik was waiting for her. "I suppose it's also unnecessary for him to stay with her all night, too?" he inquired.  
She gave him a mischievous look. "Now you're starting to understand."  
"Then I hope you're willing to bear the responsibility of causing his death. She's going to murder him." ***  
  
Ilya awoke the next morning with a throbbing headache. Grogginess prevented her from registering the fact that she was entirely nude. She tried to sit up, but a muscular arm draped across her bare stomach prevented her from doing so.  
Horrified, she followed said sinewy arm up to Maxi's peacefully slumbering face.  
And let out a blood-curdling scream.  
Kilik, Xianghua and Annabelle heard it from the other side of the house and immediately felt sorry for poor Maxi, who got the full of it. He was broken from his respite by the horrible sound and clamped his hands over his ears. Suddenly he remembered that Ilya had no idea why they were naked and in bed together.  
Ilya had grabbed the blankets and wrapped them around herself as she scrambled to the other side of the room and backed against the wall. "What the HELL is all this?!" she demanded, trying desperately to remember what happened before she blacked out.  
She'd been in the woods ... monsters had attacked her ... Maxi saved her, but then she drew a blank - and gasped loudly. Had she slept with him as a reward? What on Earth would possess her to do such a thing? Or maybe it was all a bad dream. God, she hoped so.  
"Look, I'll explain everything, just give me something to cover myself with!" Maxi replied.  
"Use the pillow, dearie," Annabelle's cheery voice said as she and the other two guests entered the room. "Now, Ilya," she continued after he did so, "you'd best thank him for saving your life."  
"Wha ...?"  
"You were knocked unconscious and fell into the river, and by the time he got you out, you were in the early stages of hypothermia. Bringing you back here in the cold of the night didn't help that much, but as you can see, he's saved you."  
"I ... I get it. Um, thanks." Her gaze fell to the floor and remained there.  
For several moments no one spoke, and finally Maxi broke the silence by suggesting everyone get the hell out so he and Ilya could get dressed. Annabelle giggled and said, in a motherly way, "We've already seen the both of you, so what's the problem?" She, Kilik and Xianghua obliged nonetheless.  
"I'm sorry, I really am," Maxi said quietly.  
"It's okay," she said shyly. "I don't mind. It's okay."  
Maxi didn't believe her for a second. "Are you feeling alright?"  
"Yeah."  
Neither had budged from their spots, and neither knew quite what to say. So Maxi tried to apologize again, as he was used to doing by now. Ilya, however, interrupted him and said she didn't mind, that she was glad he'd saved her.  
"And ... about me being a pirate ..."  
She smiled, albeit ruefully. "It's okay. I was just mad you'd waited so long to tell me, since you knew I hated pirates. But it's fine now, I'm over it." Ilya paused and looked at him for a split second before returning her eyes to the ground. "Er ... you have a nice body. No wonder the women are all over you."  
Maxi smiled, appreciating her somewhat uneasy compliment. "If you don't mind my saying so, you do, too."  
She frowned and shook her head. "No I don't. Not with this monstrosity!" she growled, lowering her protective layer of blankets just enough to show him the top of her scar. "It's an eyesore."  
While she was looking away, Maxi stood and pulled on a pair of pants. Feeling growing concern and affection for her, he walked over to the girl and put his arms around her shoulders. She blushed, feeling quite vulnerable, but did not pull away. "I don't think so. I think you're beautiful."  
Maxi felt her muscles tense with anxiety and then relax at his touch. She leaned her forehead against his collarbone, as she was quite a bit shorter than he, and smiled. "We should get going to Marseille. You might miss your big chance for revenge."  
He kissed her on the top of the head. "You're right. Let's get going." He pulled away from her and turned his back, but she gripped his arm before he could walk away. He turned back to face her with confusion in his gaze.  
"Wait. Wait ... just stay with me a little longer, please?"  
Maxi smiled. "I'm not going anywhere, Ilya."  
"I mean ... like this. I ... I ..." Her voice cracked and she began to cry. "I want to thank you for saving me," she sobbed, wiping tears from her cheeks. "I was so scared. I was sure I was gonna die out there, alone, and then Anatoli would be all alone."  
He bent down and wiped some of her tears away with his callused thumb. "But you didn't. You don't have to worry now."  
"And I thought about you, too," Ilya continued. "I was upset that I'd been so mean. All I want is to be with you." She looked up at him and smiled through her tears. "So, you see, I don't hate you at all. I ... er ..."  
"You don't have to say it."  
Ilya gave him a look of infinite gratitude. She'd always had trouble expressing her feelings, and now that she was in love for the first time ever, her emotions were so aquiver she could barely stand it. But as long as he knew, she was happy. Maybe there would be a day when she could voice her affections.  
He kissed her, tentatively at first, unsure of how she'd react, but was overjoyed when she kissed him back. His hand ran down her arm and he entwined his fingers in hers, holding it against the wall. The blankets that obscured her body fell to the floor, and his other hand found its way from her shoulder to her side, and slid down to rest on her bare hip. Ilya's muscles pulled taut and he immediately drew back and gave her an apologetic look, trying to keep his eyes off certain parts of her nude body out of sheer courtesy. "Er, sorry."  
She was blushing and looking at the ground. Her hands found one another and she wrung them together. "No ... it's okay. I didn't mind ... I liked it." Ilya was quite appreciative of his civility, however. Had he just continued on like that, perhaps she'd question his genuine feelings. He was, after all, a playboy.  
Maxi smiled again. "Let's get going to Marseille, alright? We can't dawdle around here forever." He gave her a quick kiss and then pulled a black shirt over his head.  
"Right." She grinned cheerily and nodded. After she pulled on a shirt and a pair of pants, buckled her belt and put her silver hoop earrings back in her ears, she followed Maxi into the living room, where they were to say their final goodbyes to Annabelle, Kilik and Xianghua.  
"It was nice meeting you," Maxi said amiably as he and Ilya bid farewell to Annabelle. "Thank you so much for everything you've done. There's no way we can repay you."  
"Oh, it was no problem at all, dearie."  
Ilya smiled at Annabelle as Maxi left the house. "Thanks. I mean it."  
"So, did you two ... ?"  
She blushed and shook her head. "No, no. But thanks. It made me realize I ... er ... really like him."  
The old woman smiled and hugged the Russian girl. "Someday you'll be able to actually say 'love,' I'm sure. For now, though, just let him know how you feel through actions."  
"My mother always said 'actions speak louder than words'."  
"Goodbye, Ilya. I hope I hear from you again."  
She nodded vigorously. "Of course! I'll find a way to write to you, no matter what happens."  
"Good. Keep me updated on you and Maxi."  
Ilya waved and hurried to catch up with said pirate. They had not been able to find Xianghua and Kilik in the house, but were confronted by them not too far down the path along the Rhone. "Um, hi," Ilya said uncertainly.  
"We're on our way to Marseille," Maxi informed them, looking confused.  
"Of course you are," said Kilik, "and we're going with you."  
  
Yay! Finally they're back on the road! But how will Xianghua react when she finds that Ilya and Maxi are sort of an item? Will Kilik be able to finally say he loves her? Well ... probably. But you never know; I might change my mind and rearrange the whole story!  
  
See? I told ya it was a totally unnecessary thing that happened in this chapter. It was just kind of an excuse to get them naked and in the same bed. Love it or hate it, it's there. Although I rather hope you didn't hate it. =P Next chapter coming soon! 


	8. Stupid Things Guys Do Part I

Chapter Seven: Stupid Things Guys Do: Part I  
  
Well, looks like Ilya and Maxi finally understand each others' feelings, and it's about freakin' time, too! But what about poor Xianghua? If any of you think I hate her because of the way I've portrayed her in this fic, I don't. Not really. I would, but she's so darned cute. Especially when she says "Just joking!" in her adorable (but 87% helium) Japanese voice! If anyone knows the name of her seiyuu, please tell me. She sounds familiar and I want to see if she's done anything else, video game or anime or whatnot.  
  
"Huh?" Ilya asked intelligently.  
"We're going too. We're all after the same thing, right?" Kilik shrugged.  
Maxi noticed the reproachful look Xianghua was throwing at Ilya and sighed. 'In more ways than one ...' he thought.  
"Er ... I guess ..." the young Russian surmised.  
"Besides, your knee still hasn't healed. And I want to make sure you guys don't do anything stupid."  
They both frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" Maxi asked.  
A playful smile graced his lips. "Nothing. Anyway, would you mind if we tagged along?"  
The two looked at each other; Maxi looked cynical, and Ilya grinned at him. "I suppose not," he said finally.  
"Great! Then let's get going!" ***  
  
The journey was quite slow for the first few days. Ilya's knee wasn't fully healed, but it quickly became less painful. She didn't want to change into a wolf in front of Kilik or Xianghua; she'd had a bad enough reaction when she'd done so before Maxi. She didn't dare complain, however, because she didn't want to appear weak. She'd never heard the end of it from her siblings for minor weaknesses she'd exhibited as a child.  
They passed through a few small towns on the way, picking up supplies and resting for the night, with the men in one room and the girls in another. It was on the fifth night that Xianghua spoke to Ilya for the first time in nearly a week.  
"Maxi seems really happy now that you two are together," she said quietly as she changed into some loose-fitting clothes for the night.  
"Together?" Ilya wondered aloud as she replaced the bandages on her leg. "Well, I wouldn't really say THAT ... it's not official or anything."  
"It doesn't have to be. I can see the way you two look at each other."  
"Are you mad?" Ilya inquired. Xianghua was facing the other way; she couldn't tell.  
"No. I don't have a right to be. Besides, Kilik said ..."  
'Alright,' Ilya thought, 'he finally worked up the nerve to tell her!'  
"... that I should just be happy for you two."  
Ilya's heart sank. "He didn't say anything else?" she asked flatly.  
"No." Xianghua finally turned to face her. "Why?"  
She sighed. "Ah, nothing. It's just that he's such a moron!"  
"Hey, you shouldn't talk about him like that! He's a very nice person."  
"Which is exactly what I'm talking about," Ilya replied as she herself changed out of her clothes. "He's nice AND he's shy. That's what makes him a moron."  
"I don't quite understand your reasoning."  
Ilya rolled her eyes, a habit she'd never been able to break. "Well, it's more like he's acting like a moron than actually being one, you know? He should really practice what he preaches."  
"What's that mean?"  
"He talked to me about being honest with your feelings, and then doesn't do it himself."  
"Huh?"  
Ilya sighed angrily. How could she be so DENSE? It was obvious she was talking about Kilik's feelings toward Xianghua. She just couldn't comprehend why it was so hard for others to understand such things.  
"Look, I'll be back in a minute, okay?" She walked out of the room and up to the door of the one Maxi and Kilik were sharing. Maxi answered, and gave her a smile.  
"Here for some late-night fun?" he teased.  
She shook her head and frowned, albeit not entirely maliciously. "Move." He obliged, and she walked up to Kilik. "Get your ass in there and tell Xianghua how you feel," she ordered, scowling.  
"What?" He looked shocked.  
"You heard me. You told me to be honest with my feelings, and I'd like to see you do it yourself."  
"But ..."  
"NOW!"  
He got up and immediately left the room, heading toward the one the girls shared. "You're playing matchmaker?" Maxi asked, raising his arched eyebrows at her.  
"It's soooo obvious he likes her, and from the way she talks about him, she likes him too but doesn't realize it yet. It pisses me off when I see people like that!"  
"Hey, we were like that once, too."  
"I know that, but hell, I didn't have to WATCH it, now did I?"  
He let out a brief laugh. "I bet the twerp is stuttering like crazy right about now."  
"Probably. He seems really shy about that kinda thing." She frowned at him. "You certainly aren't."  
"Hey, is that such a bad thing?"  
"No, I guess not." ***  
  
"Er ... that is to say ..."  
Kilik was having his share of difficulty trying to find the right words to express his feelings. His eyes refused to meet Xianghua's, and she was very confused by his behavior. "What?"  
"I ... have feelings for you," he finally blurted out, blushing like crazy and looking at the floor.  
"You ... you do?" He nodded. "Well, I ... I kinda like you too, but ..."  
"But what?"  
"But ... there might still be a chance Maxi will leave Ilya for me ..."  
"What do you mean? Don't you see how happy they are?" Now Kilik was getting upset that she seemed so intent on seeing the two split up.  
"Think about it. Maxi doesn't remember a thing about us. Maybe he'll forget about Ilya, too!"  
"That's ridiculous," Kilik said, shaking his head. "You can't sit around waiting for something to happen. Ilya taught me that."  
"Ilya, Ilya, Ilya!" Xianghua cried out, throwing her arms in the air. "That's all I ever hear about! What about me? I know it's selfish, but I hate how much attention she's getting! So what if she's strong! So what if she's smart! I don't care!"  
"Xianghua ..." Kilik was beginning to understand the girl's feelings toward the Russian.  
"She got the man I love ... he never even notices me. He'll never see past Ilya! I'm the one who loves him! He hasn't even known her a month!"  
"What are you talking about? Are you gonna try to break them up?"  
"I ... I don't know." She sniffled, holding her tears back. "It probably won't last, anyway ... he's a playboy, and she's probably only a one-night stand in his eyes."  
"I don't know about that ... remember how he acted around those women he only wanted to bed? This is really different. I think this is the real thing."  
"If it does work out, though, I'm gonna take matters into my own hands!"  
Xianghua burst into frustrated tears, and Kilik held her while she cried. He was quite heartbroken that Xianghua didn't exactly return his feelings, but was nonetheless concerned about her fixation on breaking up Maxi and Ilya's relationship.  
Meanwhile, Ilya was getting pretty nervous. She and Maxi were sitting on the bed, not speaking, not even looking at each other. Maxi felt like a fourteen-year-old boy, anxious and inexperienced (though that certainly was not the case here). Oh, how he wanted to feel Ilya's body against his, but he knew he she wasn't ready yet. The girl had never known a man's touch, and he wasn't one to force himself on a woman who didn't want it. (Heheh, that's sorta an allusion to a very good fic by my friend Crissy – update it soon, why don'tcha? I wanna read more!)  
"So ... uh ... think she likes him, too?" the pirate asked uneasily, running a hand through his hair.  
"Oh, I'm SURE she does," Ilya replied with false confidence (she was extremely apprehensive). "But I don't think she quite realizes it yet. I bet if Kilik tells her how he feels, that'll push her to admit it."  
"I never thought of you as one to try to bring people together."  
She glanced at him briefly, then looked away. "Why?"  
"Dunno ... maybe it's your personality. You seem more preoccupied with your own problems. You've got a whole slew of 'em, too."  
She giggled. "I guess so. But you do too."  
Maxi shrugged. "I suppose." He paused uneasily. "So ... er ... what are you gonna do when this is all over? The journey?"  
Ilya shook her head and then brushed her short red hair from her eyes. "I'm not sure. But I am pretty certain Anatoli will come hunt me down and drag me back to Kolmyr ..."  
His heart sank. "Really?"  
"Why?" she taunted. "You wanna settle down, get married and have a million kids?"  
The Russian was surprised when he smiled at her. "Maybe."  
"Oh God ... I don't even want one kid, let alone a million."  
"Is that so? Why not?"  
"I don't wanna be FAT."  
He began to laugh. "You didn't seem the shallow type – but I guess I was wrong when I assumed you weren't."  
She punched him playfully in the shoulder. "Shut up. You're foppish and vain, and I never talk about that, do I?"  
Maxi laid back on the bed and stretched his arms. "They're certainly taking their sweet time ..."  
"Maybe she just decided to rip his pants off and make sweet love to him," Ilya said with a perfectly straight face.  
The pirate was quite amazed by her bluntness, and laughed again. "I doubt it. The little twerp is probably more cherry than you."  
The girl glanced at him with her eerie eyes, and he couldn't fight it any longer – he had to ask. "Why are your eyes two different colors?"  
"Er ... it all goes back to the day Cervantes came to Siberia ..."  
"Oh ... sorry. I didn't mean to pry."  
"No, no, it's okay. Well, you see, after he stuck his arm right through my daddy's chest, and killed my sisters, and so on, he grabbed me by the throat, pulled a hand back, and POW – drove his index and middle finger into my eye socket." Maxi winced. (If you've ever read the later volumes of the X manga by CLAMP, this should be kinda familiar.) "See, it really did a lot of damage, and so now there's no pigment, and I'm completely blind in it."  
"No wonder you hate pirates, eh?"  
"Oh, yeah. But you know, you're not that bad." She paused and grinned. "Even if you are a bit narcissistic."  
He returned her smile, and looked up at her from his position on the bed. Being a man, he would be quite content to take her then and there (he couldn't get it out of his mind, the perv) but dared not; she'd never forgive him. It was something a pirate would do.  
"Ilya ..." he began, and she looked at him good-naturedly. "I'm sorry."  
"About what?" An expression of impatient confusion appeared on her face.  
"Just ... if anything ever happens between us ..."  
"Look, let's not talk about that. I'm way too uneasy as is."  
Grinning, he nodded. "Alright."  
At that very moment, Kilik entered the room, and the two gave him looks of hope and curiosity. "So, how'd it go?" Ilya inquired.  
"Fine," Kilik lied, knowing better than to disclose Xianghua's confessions. "She said ... er, that she feels the same way but she's not really over Maxi yet."  
Ilya gave Maxi a sideways glance. "My, you certainly are a lady- killer." He gave her an uncertain sort of smile. "So, Kilik, do you feel better since you told her how you feel?"  
He beamed. "Yeah ... yeah, I do. You were right, it was the best thing I could've done for myself."  
"Great, then. I'm going to bed." Ilya gave Maxi a flirtatious grin and Kilik a small wave as she left, and Kilik turned to the older man.  
"Um ... Xianghua is really upset about you and Ilya, and ... I don't know, it might be better if you two share a room."  
"What?!"  
"She's so angry, she might do something mean to her. And considering the way Ilya is, she'll do something mean right back. Probably worse, actually. So I'll share a room with Xianghua and try to talk to her about a few things."  
"Um, okay ..."  
"Great." Kilik caught up with Ilya as she was about to open the door to the room she was to share with Xianghua, and explained that he was going to stay the night with the Chinese girl and try to smooth things out. Feeling confused and more nervous than ever before (if that were at all possible), Ilya nodded anxiously and went back into Maxi's room.  
  
Hmmmm .... could Kilik be pulling an Annabelle? Or is he seriously trying to talk Xianghua through her jealousy? Short chapter, I know ... but the second part is on the way. Please, PLEASE review, I'd like to hit 10 reviews before starting the next chapter. Thankie. Who knows, maybe Sansaku will pop up again next chapter! And things could become truly steamy, not just pseudo-sexy! R&R, pleasie! Woo, I just said that, hahah. Laters! 


	9. Stupid Things Guys Do Part II

Chapter Nine: Stupid Things Guys Do: Part II  
  
Yo! Thanks for the reviews! They are my life-blood. So, here's the next chapter – I hope you like it! There is a bit of Xianghua-bashing here, but not a lot, and it's not because I hate her. Don't flame me if you get mad – I don't flame folks who ... wait, I don't flame folks at all. ^^  
  
To Spider-Bear: Her left eye is brown, and her right is very pale blue, like a walleye. I explained it like in the very first chapter, when she was still a wolf. ^.^ Forever ago, huh?  
  
Sansaku: (Appears in a ball of fire, a la Kasumi Karen from X – Yes, in fact, I am a fan of CLAMP!) Hi hi! It's nice to see you again!  
  
Maxi: Woo-hoo! You know what this means! ^_^  
  
Sansaku: Yup, that's right – things are gonna be a bit better for Maxi here. We all know he's been wanting a piece of Ilya for a while now. =P  
  
Maxi: Hell yeah! She's one hot chick! ^o^  
  
Sansaku: Well, since the feedback's been good, I suppose maybe you'll get a little.  
  
Maxi: FINALLY!  
  
Sansaku: Perv. Well, if this chapter seems really slow, don't worry and keep reading, it's fairly long. That being said, sit back and enjoy the show! ... Er, story!  
  
"Hello," Maxi greeted in a cheerful tone as Ilya re-entered the room.  
  
"Um, yeah, Kilik said I should stay in here."  
"Well, good. Now we can have a nice long chat."  
Her heart skipped a beat. "About what?"  
He flashed her that charming smile of his. "About anything, really. I'd like to learn a bit more about you."  
"Oh ... really?"  
"Of course."  
A million thoughts were racing through her mind. 'Why does he want to know so much about me?' 'I barely know anything about HIM!' 'I'm not that interesting.' 'Why the hell doesn't he talk about himself?' Finally, she sat down on the bed Kilik was supposed to have occupied and looked at him, where he still lay from when she'd been in there earlier. "Er ... what do you want to know?"  
"Well, if it doesn't upset you, I'd like to know about your childhood."  
She smiled. "It was pretty normal. I had parents, sisters and a brother. I never got along with my siblings that well, but I was still happy."  
"That's pretty general, you know. Is there anything specific you remember?"  
Ilya thought for a moment, and then grinned. "Well, once when I was about six I got into a huge fight with my mother. Being an idiot kid, I was ready to run away, and I started packing my bag, and she came in to help me. At first I was angry because she was teaching me the proper way to pack, and she kept adding things, but then I realized she was making it so heavy I couldn't lift it. I thought that was really sweet. She told me she never wanted me to leave, and that was the greatest feeling in the world." She had to stop then; she could feel her throat tighten and her eyes burn, as they always did before she started crying. "So, what was your childhood like?"  
He shook his head. "If you can call it that. My parents died when I was very young, and I was adopted by a group of pirates, who put me through rigorous training exercises." When he saw the shocked look on Ilya's face, he smiled again. "Don't worry, it wasn't entirely unhappy, looking back – it turned me into the man I am today."  
Ilya smiled and said, "Well, you certainly aren't suffering from a lack of character."  
Maxi sat up on the edge of the bed; the two beds were so close that their knees were nearly touching. "Ilya, I think it's best if you don't confront Cervantes," he said, his voice low and serious.  
Her eyes flashed. "What are you talking about?"  
"I know you're strong and you can take care of yourself, but Cervantes has killed so many people ... and I know you've experienced that first-hand. I don't want you to get hurt. So please, don't go after him."  
She shook her head angrily. "No. I'm going – I've already made up my mind."  
He placed his large hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes; she quickly averted her gaze. "Listen to me. I love you, okay? I don't want anything to happen to you. Please, stay here. Or go back to Russia."  
"No way, I'm not going back empty-handed."  
His heart nearly stopped. "What? What are you talking about?" Maxi feared she was after Soul Edge itself, which would cause quite a bit of conflict between not only the two of them, but between her, Kilik and Xianghua.  
"... I can't tell you."  
"Tell me, are you after the sword? I can't let you get your hands on it."  
"No, no, it's not that. It's just ... Cervantes took something from us ... and I need to get it back."  
A wave of relief washed over the Ryukyu pirate. "Thank God ... I was afraid I'd have to fight you."  
It was several moments before either spoke again. "Why ... why don't you want me to go with you?"  
Maxi shook his head and smiled. "That's not it. I just want you to be safe. You've almost died twice on this trip already, and that was about as much as I could handle."  
"So? Remember, you're the one who was poisoned. And besides, I don't have some crazy priest after me."  
A feeling of combined dread and annoyance filled him. He'd completely forgotten about that. "But you're still young. You have so much life left in you ... I'd hate to see you throw that all away."  
"Who says I'm throwing it away?" she retorted, frowning. "I'm not gonna die. I'll be fine."  
A smile graced Maxi's handsome face. "I used to be a lot like that too. Then, after I went after Astaroth for the first time, I spent four years barely able to move. It's a miracle I can walk, even though I still limp a little. I nearly died; I was inches away from it. So please, think about this. You're not invincible, Ilya."  
Truly touched by his concern for her but even more irritated by his hypocrisy, she just grumbled something completely inaudible and turned her head away. Maxi, however, was still somehow able to make it out as something along the lines of "Fine, I'll think about it." Smiling, he kissed her deeply, and within moments they were both in the same bed. The two were so consumed by passion that they had forgotten the seriousness of their situation; all that mattered was the moment they were sharing.  
"Maxi?" Ilya whispered after a minute.  
"Yeah?" He gave her a concerned look.  
"I ... I love you."  
Delighted that she'd finally been able to say those three words that were somehow so difficult, he kissed her again. "I love you, too."  
It wasn't long before the two drifted off to sleep in each other's arms. ***  
  
Ilya awoke the next morning to the sound of Maxi's steadily beating heart. She'd slept the entire night with her ear against his chest, and her neck was killing her. She saw, however, that Maxi was still asleep and decided not to stir – she wanted him to rest. Besides, he was so cute when he slept. The girl let out a soft giggle – he looked so young, so peaceful! Due to the intense pain in her neck, though, she decided to stir ever so slightly to get a bit more comfortable and closed her eyes, listening to his heart beat and feeling the gentle rise and fall of his chest.  
Within moments he stirred a bit, and slowly opened his eyes. "Morning," he greeted with a sleepy smile.  
"Good morning," she replied, beaming sunnily. She sat up and stretched her arms. "What time to you think it is?"  
Maxi glanced over at the drawn shades and shrugged. "Probably early ... it looks like it's still dark outside."  
Ilya cracked her neck in a decidedly un-feminine manner and lay back down next to him. "Good. I'm still tired."  
It was at that precise moment that a deep rumble that rattled the window could be heard and sheets of rain began pouring down. The roar of thunder was so loud it shook the room and caused Ilya to let out a yelp. Maxi smiled. "What, you're afraid of thunder?"  
She nodded meekly. "And spiders ... and small cramped places ... and a whole lot of other things ..."  
He let out a laugh. "Don't worry, it's just thunder. It's not gonna hurt you."  
"Hurts my ears well enough," she grumbled, eliciting a smile from him.  
"Well, considering it's raining like nobody's business, we should wait until tomorrow to start going again."  
Ilya yawned – she was very tired. But she knew sleep wouldn't come easily when there was a thunderstorm raging outdoors. "Come on, let's get something to eat," Maxi suggested, holding out a hand to her. She smiled and took it, and they left the room.  
Needless to say, Xianghua was very upset to see the two of them holding hands. She was about to open her mouth and say something when a booming voice called out, "MAXI!"  
Maxi and Ilya both turned around to find a scruffy man of about 30 or so smiling at them. "Maxi, long time, no see!" he said loudly.  
"Er ... Kaida?" Maxi looked quite confused, as if he were randomly guessing a name, hoping it was the right one.  
"Yep, that's right, it's me!" He let out a great bellow that was apparently a laugh. "Ah, never expected to see you again!"  
Maxi's face broke into a smile. "It's nice to see you, too," he said cheerily.  
"Ah, it's been ... what, four years? Wow, how time flies, eh? And who's this? Your latest squeeze?" The large man bent down and looked at Ilya, who'd moved herself so that she was half-hidden behind Maxi's considerably larger frame. "She's a beaut, that she is. Where'd ya find 'er?"  
"This," Maxi said with a deep fondness in his voice, "is my lover, Ilya." He gave her a tender look, and she smiled up at him.  
"Hmmm, lover? Never expected you'd settle down. What say we go have a drink?"  
Ilya smiled at him. "Go on, I know you have a lot of catching up to do."  
"R – Really?" He looked perplexed.  
"Of course. Go on!" she urged.  
As Maxi and Kaida settled down at the bar, Ilya headed off to take a bath – something she'd enjoy, considering how many aches and pains she had. The hot water would do wonders for them.  
"That's one cute girl," Kaida said, smiling. "Nice body, too."  
Maxi shifted in his chair uncomfortably. "I suppose."  
Kaida laughed. "I guess you really have changed, huh? You must be serious about this one. I remember when we first met back in India, you had a different girl every night. How long were we both at that inn? Six, seven days?"  
"Six," Maxi answered, taking a shot of bourbon.  
"So how long have you two been together?"  
"Well ... officially, about a week or so. But ... you know, we were sorta together before that."  
"Oh, I understand. You bedded 'er yet?"  
The younger pirate nearly choked on his whiskey. "Er ... no. It's not like that."  
The big man slapped his knee as he roared with laughter. "Getting sensitive, huh? Well, love's bound to do that to you. Is she anything like ... you know ... Rafa?"  
Maxi's shoulders hunched at the mention of the name. "I don't ... know. I never really thought about that."  
"I know you really liked little Rafa. She was a sweetie, wasn't she? It's too bad what happened to her."  
Maxi did not speak. He'd forgotten entirely about the only other woman he'd ever had such strong feelings for ... she, too, had been lost in India along with Kyam, Yagazzi, the rest of his crew and his ship as well. She was a beautiful girl, and so kind-hearted he felt she could make the world a better place.  
"Still sensitive about that, aren't you?" Kaida clapped a hand on Maxi's back. "Don't worry; you've got that other girl now."  
"You know ... I feel guilty whenever I'm with her. Because I'm a man. I just get so excited around her! I can't help it. I don't know what to do about it, either. She's not ready yet."  
"You may know a lot about pleasuring a woman, but you sure as hell don't know anything about their feelings. I can't help you there, mate, but she'll let you know when she's ready. Who knows, maybe she'll be just like Rafa."  
"But she knows about my past. I'm afraid that she'll think I'll leave her if she doesn't sleep with me." He shook his head. "I wouldn't be able to face her if she ... slept with me just for that reason."  
"Do you think she would do that?"  
He shook his head again. "I don't know. I hope not." Maxi paused and then laughed. "No, she's more the type to get mad and leave me if she thought that."  
A few tables away, Xianghua smiled to herself. It was a small glimmer of hope, this revelation – even if Ilya didn't leave Maxi, even if they DID sleep together just because Ilya thought he'd leave her, it would hurt Ilya nonetheless. Xianghua had known too many women who'd lost their virginity under the same circumstance that had become depressed and withdrawn to pass up this opportunity. She took a sip of her tea and then left, knowing Ilya was taking a bath. ***  
  
Ilya was humming quietly as she scrubbed the dirt and dead skin off of her elbows. Her knee was healing rapidly, she discovered, and would leave another battle scar. 'Oh, well,' she thought to herself, 'that's how it goes.'  
A knock came to the bathroom door. "I'm IN here," Ilya said rudely, half-expecting it to be Maxi. To her surprise it was Xianghua's voice that responded.  
"I know. Can I ... can I talk to you for a moment?" There was a lot of pain in her voice.  
"Um ... sure, come on in."  
Xianghua quickly entered the room and shut the door. Her eyes were puffy and red, and tears had left shining streaks on her cheeks. "What happened?" Ilya inquired.  
"It's ... it's Maxi!"  
'Oh great,' Ilya thought bitterly, 'she's gonna complain about us being together, I'll bet.'  
"He tried to ... he tried to force himself on me!" She broke into loud sobs.  
"What?" the Russian demanded in disbelief. "What the hell are you talking about?"  
"He said ... it's been too long since he'd had a woman, and he couldn't wait anymore. He said he knew I loved him, and that you wouldn't sleep with him!"  
Ilya was speechless. Gullible though she might be, she wasn't entirely sure the girl was telling the truth. Xianghua had been plenty upset that they were together, but she was truly shaken.  
"Maxi grabbed my wrists and kissed me, and when I said no, he got really angry. He did this!" She pointed to an angry red welt on her cheek that had previously gone unnoticed by Ilya. "He slapped me and called me names, and then just stormed off."  
"I'm ... I'm gonna go talk with him." Ilya's voice was flat and without emotion; she felt numb.  
"No!" Xianghua protested. "He'll be so mad if he finds out I told you!"  
"I won't mention it."  
"Promise?"  
"... I promise."  
And as Ilya stood, dried herself and pulled on a robe, Xianghua gave her a sad smile. "Thanks, Ilya. You're a good friend."  
Ilya left the room without replying or even looking back, and headed off to the room she'd shared with Maxi as the Chinese girl's face broke into a sly grin. ***  
  
Maxi was already in the room, rummaging through his backpack. "Oh, hi," he greeted cheerily as Ilya came in. Noticing she wasn't wearing much, he blushed a bit and looked away. "Er ... I'll leave while you change."  
"No, I'll go back and ...." Ilya's voiced trailed off into silence and she turned to leave. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to be alone in a room with this man anymore.  
"Wait," Maxi said, getting up and walking over to her. "Your clothes are here, I'll leave."  
"No, really, it's ..."  
Maxi grabbed her wrist gently, but Ilya spun round and slapped his hand away. Her eyes were full of fear, and he knew that fear was of him. "What ... what's wrong?"  
"N-nothing," she stammered, and headed back into the room. "I'm okay, just a little jumpy because of the thunder." She gave a nervous laugh that he saw right through. "It hasn't let up yet. I'm still a little uneasy, I guess."  
Unconvinced, Maxi started to leave the room. "No, wait," Ilya called after him. He turned to face her, and she forced a smile. "I wanted to tell you ... that I'm ready."  
A very confused Maxi asked, "What? What are you talking about?"  
"I'm ready ... to ... um, take our relationship to the next level." It hurt her to say the words; she wasn't ready, not in the least. But she loved Maxi, and she didn't want him to leave her.  
"You're sure?" he questioned, frowning a bit.  
A smile spread across her face that was realistic enough to fool him. "Yes, I'm sure."  
Maxi drew her close and hugged her tightly. "I love you, Ilya."  
She closed her eyes. "I love you, too."  
He kissed her gently; she was at first unwilling, but then melted in his arms. She still didn't want to do it – she was scared, and nervous, but found it was true what her father had once said: "Love makes you do things you'll regret."  
Maxi gently laid her on the bed and opened her robe, revealing her nude body. For a moment his eyes rested on her scar, and that made her extremely uncomfortable. He quickly caught himself and then leaned down to kiss her again. Straddling her body, he ran a hand down her chest and then to her stomach, stopping briefly before reaching even further down. His tongue entered her mouth about the same time his fingers entered her body; she had never felt such pleasure before, but she still wanted the situation to be over as soon as possible. When he pulled back from the kiss she raised herself off the bed enough to wrap her arms around his neck and put her face into his shoulder, where she knew he couldn't see her squeeze her eyes shut as tightly as possible and grit her teeth. 'Grin and bear it,' she repeated in her mind over and over like a mantra. 'Grin and bear it. Grin and bear it. Grin and bear it.'  
A glorious yet unwanted warmth spread through her body as his fingers curled upward, ushering in a wetness and ecstasy in her. When his fingers left her body he put his muscular arm behind her back and lifted her up for "easy access"; he planted soft kisses on her neck, then her collarbone, and finally on one of her smallish breasts. As he suckled on it, she took a moment to gather her strength and keep herself from crying. It wasn't often that she cried, maybe six or seven times in her life since infancy, but this was one of the times she feared she would.  
Her eyes burned badly, and she blinked rapidly to dispel the tears that were forming. God, she loved Maxi, but this was all wrong. She'd expected her first time to be much different, in particular the fact that she DIDN'T WANT TO. Maxi laid her back down on the bed, his hands on either side of her head, and gave her a look she couldn't quite decipher; was it concern, sorrow, or hurt?  
"I'm sorry," he said sadly. "I can't do this."  
The hell he couldn't; Maxi was a very well-endowed man and Ilya could feel he was willing, his body was so close and his ... well, suffice it to say he was obviously willing, at least in a physical sense.  
"What?" Ilya asked, confused though greatly relieved.  
"You're not ready," he explained with a pained smile. "I may be a pirate, a thief, a liar and a brute, but I'm not bad enough to take a woman that isn't willing."  
Ilya was silent as Maxi gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and then got off the bed. He stood and stretched, cracked his neck, then turned back to her and smiled as if nothing had happened. "Well, then, should we find Kilik and Xianghua? Sounds like the storm is letting up and we have to discuss our travel plans."  
Ilya sat up and looked at him with disbelief. "But Xianghua said ..." She quickly stopped talking. She was now quite certain that something was fishy, but she couldn't betray Xianghua's "trust," or whatever it was.  
"What?" Maxi's smile faded and was replaced at once with a suspicious frown.  
"I can't ... I promised I wouldn't tell you."  
"Did Xianghua say something to you?"  
"Well ..."  
"Ilya, please tell me what she said. If she set this up, we have to do something about it." Maxi sat on the bed next to the still-naked Ilya and put his hands on her shoulders. "Ilya, did she say something odd to you?"  
"She ..." It was very difficult for Ilya to go back on her word, but she wanted to make sure Xianghua was at all deserving of it. "She said you tried to force her to ... you know, because it had been so long since your last time and I wasn't sleeping with you."  
He frowned at the revelation, but then smiled in an awkward sort of way. "And you believed her? Do you really think I'm that bad?"  
Ilya looked as if he'd called her some horrendous name, she hadn't thought about how he'd react to something like that. Her eyes went wide and her jaw opened a little, and she appeared hurt as well as shocked. "No, I ... I didn't want to believe it. But, you know, I really love you and I just thought ..."  
Maxi shook his head. "Don't worry about it, I'd question myself too. With my past, how could I expect you not too?" He gave her a playful grin, which she returned, albeit shyly.  
"I'm sorry. But ... when you stopped and said you couldn't ... you don't know how much that meant to me. It made me realize that you're a good person, and I really want to be with you."  
"What do you mean by that?"  
She smiled and shook her head. "Nothing. Never mind."  
"I'm going to have a frank talk with our friend Xianghua," Maxi said, with a shadow of a frown. "What are you gonna do?"  
Ilya thought hard for a minute. "I ... guess I'll get dressed, for starters," she said with a shrug. She grabbed her robe and pulled it over her shoulders. "And ... Maxi?"  
"Yes?"  
"Thanks for ... you know. Not going through with it."  
He smiled at her. "Don't worry about it. The last thing I'd ever want to do is hurt you."  
Ilya thought hard about Maxi after he left. She sat on the bed, still wearing only the robe, and looked up at the ceiling. God, how she wanted him. When his body was pressed against hers ... her stomach had gone aflutter, and she'd felt as if she were floating. Now that she knew he wouldn't leave her if she abstained ... she felt differently about sleeping with him.  
She giggled a little and decided to wait for him to get back. ***  
  
"You don't understand, Maxi, I did it for you!" Xianghua protested as the pirate confronted her about the lie she'd told Ilya.  
"You lied to Ilya and told her I'd forced myself on you! How, exactly, is that doing something for ME?" he demanded, fighting hard to keep himself from yelling.  
"Because I love you!" she answered, bursting into tears. "I don't see why you love Ilya so much! I've loved you since we first met!"  
"I don't care." His voice was cold and emotionless. "Love me all you like. I'll never forgive you for this."  
Kilik, who was watching anxiously, decided to interject. "Look, let's ... just leave things as they are, and ... well, hope Xianghua gets over this soon. Maxi, I'm sorry, I tried to talk to her, but ..."  
Maxi regarded Kilik with a frown, but then his expression softened. "Don't worry about it, kid. It's alright, it wasn't your fault."  
Xianghua took off toward the room Ilya and Maxi shared, and before either of the men could stop her, she'd burst in, grabbed Ilya's knife from the bedside table, and taken a swipe at the Russian girl, who had her back to the door. A shallow gash opened up on the back of her shoulder; she turned to face Xianghua, thoroughly shocked.  
Kilik tackled Xianghua and wrenched the knife from her grasp; Maxi was at Ilya's side in an instant, checking her wound. "What the hell are you doing?!" Kilik shouted, leaving the others in awe. He'd never spoken so harshly. He was holding her down on the floor, gripping her wrists. "Give it up! Maxi doesn't love you. I do!"  
Ilya was astonished and nearly in shock but smiled nonetheless. 'He's finally told her!' she thought.  
"You can't keep trying to get between them!" Kilik continued in a snarl. "They love each other. Can't you see that? Shouldn't you just be glad that Maxi's happy?"  
Maxi held Ilya protectively and she rested her head gently on his shoulder. "Xianghua, just ... let's just leave them be, okay?" the younger man suggested, his voice returning to its normal calm, soothing tone. Xianghua nodded tearfully, and gave Ilya an apologetic look as she and Kilik left.  
"I can't believe she attacked you," Maxi said moments later. He shifted positions so he could better inspect her shoulder. "Take your robe off."  
Ilya let down the right sleeve of her robe to expose the back of her shoulder. "Ow," she hissed as Maxi checked it briefly.  
He smiled. "Thank God she wasn't exactly thinking straight – it's really shallow. Probably hurts like hell, though, right?" She nodded. "Well, don't worry, I think Kilik might have little Xianghua under control."  
Ilya looked at Maxi shyly. "Maxi ... I'm ready."  
"Ready for what?"  
She frowned and gave him a half-playful, half-irritated smack on the arm. "You know what for!" she growled.  
"How am I supposed to know? Ten minutes ago you weren't ready, and now you suddenly are?"  
"I thought about it a lot, and I changed my mind."  
He sighed, albeit good-naturedly. "That's a woman for you – always changing her mind."  
"You're a jerk."  
"Yes, you've said so before. And you're a brat."  
Ilya laughed. "You're really mean, you know?" She leaned in close so her forehead was resting against his and smiled. "But I love you anyway."  
"I love you, too, Ilya." His lips met hers, and he kissed her passionately. Her hands slowly worked his shirt off and then caressed his muscular chest when he cast it aside. Her hands also found their way to his belt, which she promptly unbuckled. As he removed his remaining clothes, she ran her fingers up his hardness and felt him shudder slightly. "You're sure?"  
She leaned forward, put her lips to his ear, and whispered, "Make love to me."  
Maxi put a hand on the collar of her robe that remained on her body and slowly slid it off her shoulder; it fell to the bed, exposing, once again, her chest. Ilya's body stiffened at the touch of his hands upon her breasts, and she let out a long breath as he massaged them. As he kissed her again he pinched her nipples slightly, and then pushed her down on the bed so she was lying down. Maxi's hands ran themselves down her body, and he finally reached her sensitive spot. He fingered her gently at first, but then with increased fervor. Her juices soaked his fingers, and she felt as though something was building up inside of her.  
Finally he pulled his fingers from her body, and then spread her legs open. "This is going to hurt a bit," he warned in a whisper, but Ilya just smiled up at him. She'd had many a friend gossip to her about the "first time"; they'd warned that it was at first an almost ripping sensation, then dull pain that persisted for days. They'd even said it would bleed - something Ilya was not looking forward to.  
His hardness pushed itself into her slowly, pushing its way past her lips and into her soft, warm insides. Maxi nipped her earlobe to pull some focus away from the pain, a tactic he'd employed many times with virgins. Sure, it hurt, the initial entrance, but Ilya found it wasn't nearly as bad as she'd initially feared. The feeling was the same warmth that had spread through her body when he'd first put his fingers in her, but on a much grander scale. She felt her virginity give way with his first thrust, and her hands clutched at the white sheets on the bed. With each pump her sensitivity heightened, and she gripped the sheets until her knuckles were white. 'It feels so good,' she thought as she became wetter and wetter. 'I'd never thought it'd feel like this.'  
After a few moments a strange feeling overcame Ilya, and then it felt as if something inside her had burst. A violent intake of breath and a loud moan made Maxi laugh. "Just had your first orgasm, eh?" he asked, bending down and kissing her forehead. "So how was it?"  
"It was ... the greatest feeling in the world," she replied, slightly out of breath. And oh, God, was it ever. She wanted nothing more than to experience that again, sometime, with Maxi.  
He wrapped his arms around her body and pulled her up so that she was sitting in his lap, legs on either side of his. "Was it, now?" he asked with a playful grin. Then he began thrusting again, while sucking on her left breast and groping her right. With each passing second he felt himself closer to climax, and within a few minutes he'd reached it. He let out a soft groan as he blew inside her, and she, too, was clearly aware of what had transpired.  
Ilya's cheeks were flushed and her body exhausted from her orgasm. It was still early in the day, but Maxi decided it best to allow her to sleep. And he would sleep with her. Their bodies separated, although only for a moment, as Maxi hugged her from behind when she sat up. "I love you," he whispered in her ear.  
"I love you too," she replied, and the two of them lay down together, falling into a near-blissful slumber in one another's arms.  
  
Sansaku: (notices the chapter has ended and quickly gets off the couch and puts away her bag of popcorn) So there you have it, folks! Maxi and Ilya have finally done it!  
  
Maxi: (lights cigarette) Oooooh yeah.  
  
Sansaku: (grabs said cigarette from his mouth and puts it out on his shoulder) Stop that!  
  
Maxi: ACK! What the hell did you do that for?!  
  
Sansaku: THAT is for not giving Xianghua what-for! You shoulda kicked her arse!  
  
Maxi: .... "Arse"?  
  
Sansaku: (slaps hand to her forehead in disgust and shakes her head) God ... never mind. You're hopeless.  
  
Maxi: "Arse" ..... hm, not in my vocabulary.  
  
Sansaku: Whatever, just shut up. Anyway, I hope ya'll enjoyed that chapter. This will NOT be the only steamy one, however – Maxi and Ilya are bound to get it on again.  
  
Maxi: MULTIPLE times. ^_^  
  
Sansaku: Oh, for the love of God, stop being a pervert! Bye for now, hope to see you again soon! And give BillysLittleCowgirl some reviews; she loves them like she loves cake. And boy does she love cake. ^.^  
  
(Sansaku and Maxi wave goodbye from the couch while Chobi drags Talim around by a pigtail in the distance) 


	10. The Priest and The Puppet

Chapter 10: The Priest and the Puppet  
  
Sansaku: (is happily eating a HUGE bowl of ice cream, sitting on the couch next to Maxi, who's chomping on Doritos; notices the chapter is up and tries, unsuccessfully, to hide her snack) Oh, hi hi! Didn't see ya'll there. Maxi and I were just discussing the vast differences between the outfits in Soul Calibur and Soul Calibur II.  
  
Maxi: Yeah, I liked my jacket better than the vest, but I like my black pants better than those green ones. (continues eating Doritos) But I'm glad I got to keep my pimpin' blonde hair. Still upset about losing the third costume, though.  
  
Sansaku: At least they got rid of Kilik's HIDEOUS yellow pants. .  
  
Maxi: Hahah, yeah, that was a good idea.  
  
Sansaku: And Hwang. I don't mean to be a hater (well, maybe I do), but he wears the GAUDIEST things.  
  
Maxi: Yeah, but, uh ... aren't we getting off track?  
  
Sansaku: What? Oh, right! The chapter! Well, we're gonna kick it up a notch and get more into the Action/Adventure nature of things. And BillysLittleCowgirl is a bit embarrassed about what went on in the last chapter, so she's taking a break.  
  
Maxi: (smiles mischievously, but says nothing)  
  
Sansaku: Well, have fun reading. Oh, by the way, no lemony stuff this time – I'm just here for the food. There probably won't be much lemony stuff from now on – if you want that, check out BillysLittleCowgirl's other Soul Calibur fic "Wandering Sky," at Adultfanfiction.net. It's under the name Sansaku. (Shameless self-promotion ...) Oh, and she'll be back soon.  
  
Maxi: Heheh.  
  
Sansaku: What's up with you?  
  
Maxi: You don't know the real reason the author's away, do you?  
  
Sansaku: What? No ....  
  
Maxi: HAHA! You're her alter-ego and you don't know? How pathetic.  
  
Sansaku: Hey!  
  
Maxi: See, she's hiding away in her room because she's been irreparably traumatized.  
  
Sansaku: What? How?  
  
Maxi: You know in Soul Calibur I, when Astaroth stands up from a crouch?  
  
Sansaku: Yeah ...  
  
Maxi: His ass jiggles.  
  
Sansaku: EWWW!  
  
Maxi: Yeah, a LOT, too.  
  
Sansaku: (covers her cat ears with her hands and curls up in the fetal position) Gross ... gross ... gross...  
  
Maxi: (laughs evilly and steals Sansaku's ice cream)  
  
Maxi awoke early the next morning and, still half-asleep, reached out for Ilya's warm body. His eyes snapped open when he realized she wasn't there. He climbed out of bed and pulled his clothes on, looking around the room one more time before he finally decided she had to be elsewhere.  
  
"Have you seen Ilya?" he asked Kilik, who was eating breakfast.  
  
"Yeah. She went outside a while ago ..."  
  
Worried about the girl's safety because of her horrid sense of direction, he headed immediately for the door to the inn and opened it. He was relieved to find her just outside, performing katas with her knife drawn.  
  
Her movements were so elegant and fluid it looked more like a dance than a kata; he watched for a few moments, captivated, but quickly rushed to her side when her injured knee buckled. He caught her around the waist just before she hit the ground, and she looked up at him with surprise. Slowly a self-conscious sort of smile spread across her face and she said, "Well, I guess it's not completely healed yet, huh?" with an awkward chuckle. Maxi smiled back and helped her to her feet. Ilya put her dagger back in its sheath and looked up at him, blushing ever so slightly. "Good morning, by the way."  
  
"Good morning." He embraced her tightly and rested his chin on the top of her head. "Did you sleep well?"  
  
Ilya giggled. "Yeah. Oh, and sorry for leaving you there."  
  
"Don't worry." He pulled away from her, his hands resting on her shoulders, and smiled widely. "Ready to start traveling again?"  
  
"Of course!"  
  
Maxi and Ilya gathered their things, including their traveling companions, and headed south along the Rhone even further. Xianghua seemed much more tolerant of Ilya and Maxi's affection toward her, and didn't even bat an eyelash when they kissed. This brought endless relief to the Russian, who didn't want any bad feelings between them. The sun was beginning to set when the four of them came across what looked like a ruin of a massive chateau; only the foundation and a few stone walls remained.  
  
"Wow!" Ilya exclaimed as she gazed out toward the horizon beyond the ruins. "If you look at it from this angle, it's really pretty ..."  
  
Xianghua stood next to Ilya and squinted at the orange-and-magenta clouds, then grinned and gave a nod of approval. "Yup, beautiful!" she agreed.  
  
"Well I guess we'd better stay here for the night, since there's a bit of shelter," Kilik mused, pointing to two walls that intersected, with a patch of roof still intact.  
  
The girls decided to bathe in the river while the men set up camp, and even though they couldn't see them, Maxi and Kilik could hear them giggling and talking excitedly. "I'm glad they're getting along now," Kilik said softly as he laid out a few blankets to serve as the girls' beds. "It was really tense for a while."  
  
Maxi nodded in agreement. "It was, wasn't it?"  
  
"You know ... even though you don't remember us, some things might be familiar to you."  
  
That, however, struck a nerve. "Let's not get into that," the older of the two grumbled, and Kilik shrugged and went about his business.  
  
The girls dressed quickly and ran back to the makeshift campsite. The four travelers sat down to eat their dinner, but something interrupted them.  
  
First Ilya thought she heard something (Maxi trusted her hearing; after all, she was a wolf-girl), but dismissed it just as quickly as she had been alerted. Then Kilik thought he saw something out of the corner of his eye. By now the four of them were very nervous, and took up their weapons.  
  
One of the crumbling walls that surrounded them burst apart in a hail of dust and bricks. When the dust settled, before them stood a colossal figure wielding a massive axe. The creature carrying the axe was clad in black leather, wore a face mask, and had eyes that were not eyes at all, but white orbs that burned from within his bald skull.  
  
"Astaroth ..." Maxi murmured, suddenly unable to move.  
  
High-pitched laughter came from behind the enormous golem. A very thin old man with a pointed beard and strange symbols tattooed on his face walked up beside it and gave the four companions a crafty grin. "Quite right, my intrepid friend ... brought back from the abyss you tossed him into. You've been quite a thorn in my side, you know." He glanced at Kilik and Xianghua. "Ah, yes, and the two 'heroes' who managed to destroy Soul Edge. You sure did a shoddy job, though – it's still alive and well." His eyes finally fell upon Ilya, and widened ever so slightly. "Oh-ho, what's this? A Strucov, way out in these parts? One of only two left. Tell me, dear, are you the wolf or the falcon?"  
  
"The wolf," she said in a timid voice she refused to recognize as her own.  
  
"How interesting," he hissed, his lips curling into a half-snarl, half-smile. "I may have a use for you ... Astaroth, kill them – but bring me the little one alive AT ANY COST."  
  
"Yes, Kunpaetku," the golem said in a gravelly voice. Kunpaetku turned and walked of to parts unknown, and Astaroth charged the four adventurers.  
  
He brought his axe down between Xianghua and Kilik; before Kilik could bring Kali-Yuga to strike the golem, Astaroth hit him head-on with a headbutt in the chest. Kilik was knocked backward and crumpled to the ground, motionless.  
  
Xianghua cried out for him and barely managed to parry Astaroth's next attack. As Maxi too was knocked away by a swing of the golem's arms, Xianghua shouted at Ilya to run. The Russian girl, terrified of what 'use' Kunpaetku would have for her, nodded and turned to run, but then felt Astaroth's huge hand wrap itself around her neck.  
  
Ilya let out a scream as she was lifted off the ground and into the air and struggled greatly. She gripped Russkaya Pravda and blindly attacked him, managing to bury the blade in his arm. Roaring in pain, he tossed her aside, and she landed hard on her side as her dagger clattered to the stone floor beside her. A small pool of blood was forming around her temple, and Xianghua knew at once she'd hit her head hard enough to knock her out.  
  
Maxi lunged for the golem, smacking him hard across the face with his nunchaku. As Astaroth stumbled backward, clutching his face, the pirate leapt forward again and punched him hard in the chest and again in the face. The monster regained its footing and began to retreat, and Maxi started after him in hot pursuit.  
  
Xianghua threw herself at him and tried to drag him back by an arm. "What are you doing?!" he roared, trying to shake her off of him. "This is my chance! I need to kill that monster!"  
  
"Maxi ..." she sobbed. "Kilik and Ilya are hurt! They need help!"  
  
"You take care of them! I'm going after Astaroth." He shook his arm once more, this time hard enough to send Xianghua to the ground.  
  
"What about Ilya?!" she shouted at him, still crying. "You said you wanted to protect her – so why are you so willing to abandon her now?"  
  
Maxi stopped dead in his tracks and flinched. The only thing on his mind since he learned the beast still lived was revenge ... he owed it to his comrades. But now that he had his chance...  
  
"You love her, don't you? What will I tell her when she wakes up and you're gone? That revenge is more important to you than love?!"  
  
"It is," he said coldly. "Vengeance is the most important thing to me right now."  
  
"You selfish bastard ..." Xianghua seethed. "I can't believe you. You'll have other chances to fight Astaroth – the priest wants us dead and Ilya captured. He's not going to give up so easily! So let it go for now and help me take care of them!"  
  
Finally Maxi decided to let the golem go for the moment and help Xianghua tend to the wounds of their companions. Xianghua determined Kilik had broken a few ribs but other than that he was fine. Maxi gently picked Ilya up and put her on her makeshift bed. With water from the river he wiped the blood from the left side of her face; it had come from a cut she suffered when she hit her head. It was the only thing wrong with her that he could see. He grabbed her hand and put it against his cheek, enjoying the feel of her soft, silky skin against his. "I'm sorry, Ilya," he said softly, "but the only thing on my mind right now is revenge. Please understand."  
  
Xianghua looked on sadly as Maxi left the campsite and headed toward the river. He sat on a rock and looked out over the water, where he remained until the moon rose.  
  
Ilya began to stir soon after, and sat up next to the crackling fire. "What happened?" she asked, rubbing her head. "My head hurts ..."  
  
To her surprise, Xianghua embraced her so tightly she feared she'd be snapped in two. "Ilya ... please don't be mad at Maxi," the Chinese girl pleaded. "He's a good person, and he really loves you, but ... he's still so angry about losing his crew. They were his family. He needs to have his revenge before he'll settle down. Once Astaroth is out of the way, the only thing in his world will be you. Please, don't hate him."  
  
All at once Ilya knew what Xianghua meant, what Maxi had meant to do, and what she needed to do. "Don't worry," she said in her heavy accent. "I won't." She got to her feet, a bit shakily, and walked over to the rock where Maxi was still sitting. "Um ..."  
  
"Feeling better?" Maxi asked. She couldn't see his expression, nor could she tell what he was feeling from the tone in his voice.  
  
"Yes. May I ... sit down?"  
  
"Go ahead."  
  
She sat down next to him, so close their bodies were touching. "You didn't have to stay behind, you know. I would've understood if you'd gone after him."  
  
"Xianghua begged me to stay. Said she didn't know what she'd tell you if you woke up and I was gone."  
  
Ilya smiled. "It wouldn't matter, I wouldn't care." He was a bit stung by her words. "I know how you feel, having so many loved ones taken from you. We all have our pain." He turned his head slightly and noticed her eyes were shiny from tears. Her voice began to crack. "You could run off and I'd be fine, because I know, somehow, that if we got separated you'd come look for me. The only thing that scares me is ... if you got killed, that I'd waste away waiting for you, and you would never come back. That's the only thing."  
  
Maxi put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. "Don't worry; I don't plan on dying anytime soon. You can trust me on that."  
  
Ilya closed her eyes and leaned against him. "I hope so."  
  
Maxi: Yeah, pretty short, but it's been awhile since the last update. Oh well. See ya next time. Seems things are gonna get interesting ... who knows, maybe we'll even get to Marseilles! 


End file.
